


The Folly of Adrien Agreste

by IronMarshmallow



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Lila Rossi Faces Consequences, Partner Betrayal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:22:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29403327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IronMarshmallow/pseuds/IronMarshmallow
Summary: Adrien’s lured to the dark side. No big deal, really. Once he gets Ladybug’s miraculous, he can wish the betrayal away, right? If only she’d just quit resisting so much.
Comments: 29
Kudos: 106





	1. Chapter 1

“He is not in his room,” Nathalie said as she stepped into Gabriel’s study.

“This is the third time,” Gabriel murmured. His gaze did not stray from his computer monitor, where Ladybug and Chat Noir were battling one of his akumas.

It was currently half past midnight.

Despite the mounting evidence, his mind still tried to rationalize away the absences, the coincidences, the oddities. He’d suspected before and had dismissed it. But not now.

“My son is Chat Noir.”

Just saying the phrase out loud seemed to stir something in the air. A portent was gathering to cast light on a focal point – a nexus through which all that was would transform to become all that will be.

“My son is Chat Noir,” Gabriel murmured again, a violet glint in his eye. “And with him, Ladybug’s doom shall be complete.”

#

Adrien awoke to a feeling of wrongness. Probably just the fatigue from having to deal with three nightly akumas in a row. Jeez, did Hawk Moth get moved to the graveyard shift at work? Was he developing insomnia? Whatever it was, it was wreaking havoc on his beauty sleep.

Strangely, his curtains had been cast wide open, letting morning sunshine flood his room. He always closed his curtains before bed to avoid just that issue. He was sure he hadn’t forgotten. But then his eyes adjusted, and he registered the solitary dark figure silhouetted against the blinding wall of light.

“Father?” He rubbed his eyes as if to dispel the ghostly apparition. “What – what time is it? And why are you here in my room?”

For a moment, Adrien’s questioning tone hung suspended in the air before his father finally replied, “You remind me of her.”

Adrien’s breath hitched. His father seldom spoke of Adrien’s mother, but there was no mistaking the tone in his voice whenever he did. Longing, bitterness, regret – all the things which now defined Adrien’s relationship with the man.

“She would be proud of the fine young man you’re becoming,” he went on. “That is, if she were here to see you.” He turned his head slightly so that he stood in profile. “But that there were a way to make that dream a reality.”

Adrien carefully eased himself into a sitting position. He gave the room a quick once over to try to spot the mind-controlling akuma that no doubt had to be here making his father act this way. It was only then that he realized his ring was missing. A panicked glance told him it was not on his bed, nor on his nightstand. He never took it off. Not to sleep. Not to shower. Never.

“To think that I have failed your mother so dearly. What would she say if she discovered that you have been running around on the rooftops fighting supervillains for more than a year.”

His father’s words pulled all his attention back to him. And there, held loosely between thumb and forefinger, was his ring. This was it then. The moment he’d feared since the very first day he’d donned his miraculous. His father’s discovery meant for certain that he would no longer be Chat noir. His father wouldn’t let him, and even if he did, Ladybug wouldn’t. 

Master Fu had been adamant. The kwamis had been adamant. Ladybug had been adamant. He imagined her soulful, sad, disappointed eyes. He imagined her hand outstretched, palm up, waiting for the ring to be handed over. He imagined the endless parade of lonely nights trapped in his bedroom, longing, regretful, embittered glances cast out his windows, searching ever more for glimpses of his lady.

His father pressed on. “Putting your life at risk day after day. And for what? A pair of earrings? A piece of jewelry? You could have died. You have died. Many times over. While the sacrifices you have made may seem admirable, ask yourself, Adrien, to what end has it all been for?”

The fact that his father were still here arguing made the flame of hope sputter to life in Adrien’s heart. Could there still be a chance for him to argue for some last vestige of freedom?

“We have to protect Paris.” He needed to be strong. He needed to be Chat Noir. His lady needed him, if for nothing else, then to secure the ring and return it to her.

“Do you? What exactly do you think you’re protecting Paris from?”

The question felt like a trap, but Adrien felt powerless to do anything other than to fall into it. “We have to protect Paris from Hawk Moth.”

“Do you even know what Hawk Moth wants with the miraculouses?” his father demanded. “Do you even know why you’ve been fighting?”

“It doesn’t matter! Hawk Moth’s terrorizing Paris. No one good would do something like that.”

“Hawk Moth’s working with what he has,” his father’s tone resumed that softer, lulling quality. “He told you that very first day that the fighting would end if only you relinquished your miraculous. Whose fault is it truly that Paris has been terrorized for all these months?”

“But Ladybug-“

“Did you even bother to ask Hawk Moth what he wants? Or have you just been blindly following a girl around all this time like a lovesick fool? A girl that doesn’t respect you? A girl that will never love you back?”

“I’m still her partner.” The words, which thrummed like a live wire inside his head, was barely a spark on his lips.

“Really?” Again his father’s voice was inflected with that all-too-familiar tone of contempt. “Has she given you a second miraculous then?”

Something in the question made Adrien feel exposed. Something seemed to be lurking beneath the words, hidden in the in-between spaces, just out of sight.

“Wait,” Adrien began, mind still trying to defragment itself into some semblance of order, “how do you know Ladybug has all the other miraculouses?”

“You’ve been fighting a battle that never needed to be fought. That’s the truth, isn’t it? Others told you to fight. Others dangled that ring in front of you, promising great power. But in the end, it was a chain they used to trick you, to bind you, to make you their slave.”

“That’s not true.” It couldn’t be. Yet hadn’t he been frustrated over that same issue in the past? Being kept in the dark without rhyme or reason? Thoughts and feelings and frustrations that had lived deep inside his heart, shoved away because he didn’t want to examine them? Why had it been Ladybug who selected all the heroes? Why had it been Ladybug who was trained to assume guardianship?

“Did they ever explain why they picked you, Adrien for this grand honor?”

He picked at a thread on his duvet. No, they hadn’t. He’d never asked, never wanted to hear the truth.

“But you know why, don’t you? They thought you pliable. They thought you easily led. Obedient. You are an attack dog. A meat shield. Nothing more.”

“You’re Hawk Moth.” The realization should have been more terrifying. He should’ve jumped up and ran for the nearest exit. Or at least lunged for his ring. Yet he knew, somehow, that the worst was yet to come, that his father, Hawk Moth, was building up to something. The man could’ve stolen away with the ring in the middle of the night, Adrien never the wiser, never knowing what had happened to his ring or his kwami. But he was here, because… he wanted something from Adrien, believed he could get Adrien to give it to him. And there was only one thing he’d ever known Hawk Moth to want, and it was the one thing Adrien, between them, had the better chance of retrieving.

“The ladybug and black cat miraculouses, when combined, grant the wielder a wish. Just imagine it, son. A wish that could grant you anything your heart desires. Wealth, power, fame… even love.”

Love, Adrien echoed in his thoughts. A sick feeling began to steal over him. There was almost nothing his father could say to make him betray Ladybug. Almost nothing. Almost, almost, almost.

“What would you do for love, Adrien?” His father turned back to face the world outside. “How far would you go to protect the ones you love. To bring them back from the brink of death.”

He’s talking about mother. That’s what this is all about. All this time. All this fighting. Ultimate power. One wish.

“I can’t betray Ladybug.”

“Even for your mother, Adrien? If your lady were half the person you profess her to be, would she not aid you in this one endeavor? After everything you have sacrificed for her and her little crusade?”

Deep down though, he knew she wouldn’t agree. And he couldn’t blame her for it. Her duty was to Paris. It was to keep the miraculouses from Hawk Moth. She was nothing if not her duty. She would not renege on that. Not for him.

His father pressed on, voice gentle, coaxing and cutting, “Is Ladybug herself not weary of all this fighting? Would it not be in her interest to relieve her of this burden? If she knew the truth – that there were no grand villain at the end of this long struggle, but merely a man seeking to save his wife? Think about it. One moment, one action. All her troubles would be over. Just like you. You could both be teenagers again. Think about it, Adrien. With the masks off, you would be free to pursue your lady as Adrien. She may rebuff the attentions of Chat Noir, but with no more duty, no more masks, no more lies and secrets, could she really resist Adrien Agreste? Just imagine bringing her home… to meet your mother.”

His room started to blur as tears spilled down his cheeks. His mother. A portrait of her was right there. Her bright smile, her vibrant green eyes. Her love, which even now, years later, still lingered in his heart.

“She’ll never forgive me.” This seemed to be the last talisman – one last defense against the dream which tempted him.

“She never has to know,” his father murmured, having come close and sat next to him on the bed. “We will have the power to rewrite reality, son. Can it truly be called a betrayal if she never remembers it? Your perfect life is right there for the taking, if only you have the courage, the tenacity, the will to reach forward and seize it.”

His father, with a touch of tender love Adrien hadn’t felt in a long time, took Adrien’s hand in his and slid the ring back on.

“Let me show you where your mother resides. Then make your decision.”

His room, which had always seemed so cavernous, now felt like it was too small to contain him and this thoughts. His mother…. If there could ever be a reason to turn to villainy…. 

Plagg rematerialized in a burst of green light. “Kid, don’t do it. Transform and cataclysm your way out of this madhouse.”

Of course his kwami would say that. His kwami didn’t understand, didn’t care.

“It’s fine, Plagg.” Adrien couldn’t quite meet his kwami’s eyes. “I’ll just go and listen. I at least should hear him out.”

“Kid-“

“It’s my mother down there, Plagg.” And before Plagg could make a further appeal, Adrien uttered the transformation command. “Claws out.”

He looked up to see something new in his father’s expression. Was that approval?

“Dark wings rise.”

A mix of dread and anticipation filled Adrien at the indigo light that pulsed around his father’s form, leaving behind the figure of his once nemesis.

“Follow me, son, and discover the truth.”

#

For Marinette, it was a day like any other. The sun was shining and the clear blue sky was lightly dotted with big fluffy white clouds.

“Thanks, Maman!” she cried, backpack slung over one shoulder and purse slung over the other, as she snatched a croissant from the living room before zooming out of the house. She couldn’t have made it to school faster if she’d been transformed, darting up the front steps of College Francoise Dupont, taking two or even three at a time.

“Look at you move,” Alya said, waiting at the top step with her boyfriend, Nino. “And with two minutes to spare. Girl, that’s impressive.”

Her secret life as a superhero had, slowly over time, paid dividends in terms of her physique, placing her at the very top of her class for physical aptitude in all areas – agility, speed, strength, hand-eye coordination, flexibility, and reflexes. It was one of those things she had to actively downplay, and privately, she believed that at least part of her clumsiness was the result of always having to hesitate before committing to an action. For if people saw her as some sort of budding Olympic athlete… well it wouldn’t be far to connect her to Ladybug. Better that people see her as clumsy.

The other reason for her clumsiness was just approaching. Marinette’s gaze was drawn to the blond beauty and love of her life, Adrien Agreste, and in particular, the sad and lost expression on his face. So much so, she wasn’t paying attention when she opened the door to the class, accidently whacking herself in the face.

“Ow!” she stumbled back into Alya, who caught her. Marinette’s backpack went sliding off her shoulder, swinging around and smacking Adrien in the arm before its contents went spraying in all directions.

“Watch where you’re going, klutz!” Chloé shouted, stampeding over her papers, Sabrina behind. 

Still held in Alya’s arms, her nose burning something fierce, she heard and saw Sabrina’s feet twitch over top of her sketchpad, the paper tearing down the middle. Sabrina had that little grin on her face – the kind that meant she knew she’d done something naughty and was both excited and embarrassed by it. But then she was gone, having vanished into the classroom.

“Do you need help?” Adrien asked, tentatively, but it was obvious that his mind was still elsewhere.

“Nuh-no,” Marinette said, cheeks burning. She got her own feet under her and began to scramble her papers together, shoving them haphazardly into her bag. “Just go on ahead. I’ll be there in a sec. You too, Alya.”

She determinedly ignored their pitying looks, wishing they would hurry on already. For a moment, she was alone in the hallway, Mme. Bustier’s voice drifting out from the class as she began her lecture. Marinette held her torn sketchpad in her hands for a moment. All her designs, ruined. She compressed down the bitter ache into the small box where she locked away all the other bitter aches, and took her seat in class.

#

“You’re always going home for lunch,” Alya complained. “Come on, Marinette. Join us at the cafeteria. My treat. Don’t be such a hermit.”

‘Okay,” Marinette said reluctantly. There’d been a time when she’d looked forward to the lunch hour, but now she only experienced anxiety.

“We’ll make sure we nab a seat next to Adrien,” Alya sing-songed.

“That’s not necessary, Als,” Marinette replied. Despite the fact that Adrien now had a girlfriend, Alya had not really given up the teasing. Hardly a surprise. Marinette was an open book, and it was plain and obvious that she still carried a torch for the teen model.

In a way, she reflected, her crush on Adrien was one of the two lynchpins to their friendship, the other being Ladybug. It made her a little sad to realize that half the reason for their friendship was kind of gone, and that Alya’s persistent attempts to keep the Adrienette ship alive was at least in part because they didn’t have that much else to talk about.

When they finally sat down at the table with Nino and Adrien, Marinette looked about as sad as Adrien.

“How’s things, boys?” Alya asked cheerily.

“Dude,” Nino said, “help me out here. My bro Adrien here’s been down in the dumps all day. I’ve been trying to get him to agree to see a movie tonight, but he’s adamant.”

“Piano lessons,” Adrien mumbled.

This seemed to pull Marinette from her stupor. She frowned at him. Tonight wasn’t piano lessons night. “I thought piano was on Thursday?” The moment the words left her lips, she turned away, blushing. Stupid. She shouldn’t have known that. Not unless she was a stalkery fangirl who memorized his schedule. Which she totally wasn’t.

Adrien looked up, startled. “Uh, yeah. It’s… an extra lesson for a… recital. My dad is going to be there. Can’t get out of it.”

The thought flitted through her mind that Adrien was lying, but she put it aside. It wasn’t her problem. Yet it nagged at her nevertheless. Adrien was one of the few people in her life that she still cared for. A raucous burst of laughter from what Marinette privately thought of as the Lila table, pulled their attention. Marinette tried to ignore the interest from her tablemates, even though part of her knew that they were sitting with her out of solidarity.

Not Adrien, she thought firmly. He knows Lila’s a liar. But then again, he doesn’t actually care. Maybe he thinks the lies are funny? Maybe he’d rather listen to Lila’s lies than anything Marinette had to say.

Marinette sighed inwardly. Tomorrow, she would just go home for lunch. Or then again….

On an impulse, when she had a moment to herself, she send Luka a quick text: Lunch tomorrow? We can go to my place or just sit outside somewhere.

She regretted sending the text almost immediately, and then scolded herself for the regret. Luka was amazing. She had no excuses, and if there were anyone else in her life who made her heart flutter, it was Luka.

A vision of a green-eyed cat momentarily filled her vision, and another bout of regret swept her thoughts from her afternoon science class. Apparently, they’d fallen in love in an alternate timeline. Yet that love had destroyed Paris. Part of her craved to stay on the Adrienette ship, but part of her craved to push for Chat Noir. And now a third part of her wanted the normalcy and sweetness that Luka promised. If she had a fourth love interest, then the feeling of being drawn and quartered would be complete.

There was an answering text: I’d love to. Meet you outside the school?

She texted back: See you then.

She debated sending a little heart icon, but decided not to. They weren’t there yet, and it was sending the wrong signals. Better to take it slow and get it right than rush and screw things up.

#

Marinette just finished dinner and had climbed into her room when the akuma alert went off on her phone.

Her parents probably wouldn’t bother her again that evening. A relief given how things had been ever since the expulsion fiasco. Neither she nor her parents had really understood why the expulsion had been reversed. It’d taken its toll on them. Her parents were more likely to watch her carefully when they thought she wasn’t looking. There were definitely more of those dialogue-heavy glances cast between them whenever they asked her about her day and her schoolwork. And now they were more prone to popping in and seeing how she was doing in the evenings. Sometimes, she wondered, a little uncharitably, if they were trying to spot evidence justifying some of the accusations that had been levied against her – cheating, theft, and assault.

The worst part was that she did have a pretty big secret in her room that absolutely no one could find out about. The miracle box. She flipped open the box and picked out a couple of other miraculouses. She was comfortable unifying two, and had gotten to the stage where three was manageable. Four still made her feel like her insides were on fire, but she thought she was making progress.

“What do you think, Tikki?”

Tikki was busy viewing footage of the akuma on her phone. “No Chat Noir in sight yet, but the akuma calls himself Shuffler. His power’s one of the weirder ones. You’ll need speed and guile.”

As Tikki talked, Marinette fished out two miraculouses. She made a mental note to schedule some time with some of the other kwamis that she hadn’t gotten to know yet before transforming and heading out.

#

Chat, where are you?

Ladybug was flung into a lamp post by Shuffler, who had the power to rearrange objects in his vicinity on a whim.

“Those decks were stacked!” screamed Shuffler in a frothing rage. “Now I’ll stack everything so the whole world’s against you!”

Fifteen minutes of this without Chat Noir, and Ladybug was getting sick and tired of it. She could see the ace of spades peeking out of the breast pocket of his waistcoat. So close yet so far. She zipped twenty feet away just as he cast another reshuffle. Cars switched places with planters, bicycles and even a park bench.

“Lucky charm!” she cried, giving up.

A deck of cards landed in her hands. “What do I do with this?”

She was on an ordinary street, high-rises to either side and a small park down the way. People were peeking out and recording from balconies, but other than the scattered remains of other objects, there was nothing else to rely on.

“I got it,” she said. “I hope.”

She zipped forward, throwing the cards into the air a split second before she was caught in another shuffle. The teleportation redirected her into a brick wall. “Oof!”

“No!” Shuffler was shouting as he tried to catch the cards out of midair.

Ladybug crept forward as his attention was occupied. Any moment, she thought. He was just about to snatch a fifth card out of the air when she tagged it with her yoyo.

“No!” he cried out again. “Now I can’t make my royal flush! Damn you, Ladybug!”

“There’s one extra card you have,” she said slyly, gesturing to the one in the pocket.

He stared down at it blankly for a moment before hesitatingly pulling it out and holding up the five cards in his hand. “A royal flush!” he declared excitedly. “Look, I win! I win!”

She let him have a moment of glory before she used her yoyo to snatch the ace of spades from his hand.

“No!” he cried for a third time. 

But it was already too late. She snapped the card in half, breaking his power. A moment later, she snatched the butterfly out of midair.

“Time to de-evilize!” she shouted.

After the white butterfly was let free, she used her yoyo to snatch up the fallen cards and throw them into the air. “Miraculous Ladybug!”

Phew, she thought, turning to go. Not the hardest battle she’d ever faced, but long and exhausting without her kitty to take some of the heat off.

She was just about to leap away when something dark flashed in the corner of her eye.

“Chat?”

Wham! The next thing she knew, she was smashing through a concrete planter. Her head was ringing, and she was fumbling to climb out of the broken wreckage. She staggered to one side, not quite avoiding another blow from the baton.

“Ah!” she cried. 

A downward strike had driven her into the asphalt, bouncing off it like a ping pong ball. Her vision blurred from pain and tears. She rolled over, barely noting the baton stabbing an inch into the asphalt where she’d just been.

Her mind kept struggling over the impossibility of the situation. Chat was attacking her. Chat. Was. Attacking. Her. Impossible. It had to be an imposter. Another sentimonster. Another akuma. Another something.

She threw her yoyo out to catch on something – anything that could pull her to safety. The baton came down again, quick as a flash. She screamed. The baton was suddenly a relentless piston grinding against her ribs, slowly, inexorably bending them until they broke.

#

The second last spot winked out on her earrings. Only one left. Chat remained steady, his baton pinning her in place. He felt sick to his stomach.

One more minute, and this nightmare would be over. One minute. Just one. Then he could get the earrings to his father, and they could unify them. One wish, and this whole thing would be a bad dream. No fighting. No akumas. Him attacking Ladybug would be nothing more than a memory. One only he would carry.

“Chat,” she whispered. Her eyes were full of tears. “Chat, stop. You’re hurting me.”

He looked away. His hands began to tremble. Any second now. It would all be over.

There was a flash of pink light… tinged with orange? He eased off on the baton, not wanting to shatter her torso once the invulnerable suit was gone.

He blinked once. Then twice. Ladybug had vanished, and in her place, was another superhero. One with orange and white markings. But the eyes. They were the same fiercely determined bluebell eyes. Eyes full of tears.

Shit. She was wearing a second miraculous. Chat brought the baton down again, but the moment it touched her, she vanished into a puff of orange smoke.

He whirled around, baton spinning to deflect an attack. But there was none. The street was empty. He waited for a minute. Then two. Nothing. She had fled.

Fuck, he thought. Father was not going to be happy about this.

#

Marinette fell through the window of her bedroom and landed on her bed. She bit back a scream, heedless of the blood welling up in her mouth from where she had slashed open her tongue with her teeth.

When she came to next, she was hot and sticky from sweat. Her head felt fuzzy and she had an urge to vomit. The pain in her abdomen was throbbing.

“Focus, Marinette,” Tikki was saying urgently. “You need to focus.”

She looked up blearily at the kwamis that were arrayed around her.

“Tik – Tikki?” Her voice was barely a breath.

“Yes, Marinette, it’s me. You need to finish de-transforming. It’s the only way I can help you.”

“What – which miraculous am I wearing?”

“Only the horse miraculous is left.”

Marinette uttered the de-transformation command. A moment later, she began to shiver. Blood began spilling out of the wounds she’d suffered – wounds that had been held at bay by the magic of the suits.

Tikki wasted no time laying her fingers on Marinette’s body. “Miraculous Ladybug,” she whispered.

Ladybugs raced over her, transforming her.

Marinette gasped. “What – what was that?”

“The miraculous cure,” Tikki replied, her attention still on examining Marinette. “How do you feel?”

“Strange,” she admitted. “I’ve never seen you do that.”

“We try not to use our powers directly. They can have unpredictable effects.”

“I feel tingly.”

Tikki pursed her lips. “We can’t control our powers with the same finesse as when you use them. I’m sorry, Marinette. I was just so worried.”

“”Oh Tikki, you never have to apologize for keeping me safe. But I don’t understand – I thought the suits were supposed to be invulnerable? How come Chat was able to break my ribs?” She absently touched her stomach where she could still feel the phantom sensation of his baton grinding down on her.

Tikki nodded solemnly. She floated up and nuzzled Marinette’s cheek. “They are. But Chat Noir’s power is from the kwami of destruction. If there is ever a power that can penetrate the protective suit, it would be his. Just like you have luck and creativity on your side as a natural part of your powers, Chat has misfortune and destruction on his side. Whenever he uses his claws or his baton, there is always a destructive element that accompanies it.” Tikki whispered in her ear, her voice containing apology and plea and sorrow all in one. “I felt it when he hit you, Marinette. He was really trying to hurt you.”

“No,” Marinette said firmly. “That can’t have been Chat Noir. I refused to believe it. We’ve faced imposters before, and they’ve had powers analogous to ours. This has to be more of the same thing. Maybe a sentimonster?”

“Maybe,” said Tikki worriedly, but Marinette could read the doubt in her kwami’s eyes. No mere akuma or sentimonster could have breached the defensive power of the suit. That privilege was reserved for Chat Noir and Chat Noir alone.

Marinette glanced at Trixx and Kaalki for advice, but they shrugged helplessly.

“Maybe he’s been possessed.”

Tikki darted down to her desk and snagged a couple of cookies. She munched quickly, mumbling through her mouthful of food. “He couldn’t have been possessed, Marinette. The possession would have been lifted by the miraculous cure. Unless it’s something none of us have ever seen before.”

“Maybe he was possessed after I cast the cure.” But Marinette couldn’t say that with any conviction. He’d struck within seconds of her casting it.

The kwamis exchanged more worried glances.

“Guys, what am I going to do?” The question hung in the air without answer. Half the akumas she’d ever faced she’d only beaten because of Chat Noir’s help. If she had to fight him too… she doubted she’d last even five akumas. He’d been murderously ruthless this evening. She shivered from the memory of it.

Fluff and Sass, who had been manning her computer in her absence, floated over. “Mistress Marinette,” Fluff said. “You’ve been getting a lot of messages from Miss Alya.”

Tikki zoomed over to her phone and added. “Three messages and two missed calls.”

Marinette scrambled down from her bed. Mindful of Tikki’s comments regarding side effects, she gave herself an experimental stretch. She felt normal. Better than normal, even, if she were being honest. Hmm. Maybe she should get a dose of Tikki’s magic more often.

Fluff and Sass had returned to working the computer. They brought up the most recent articles from the Ladyblog. In big bold letters the article’s title read: LADYBUG BETRAYED?

Marinette grimaced.

“You need to watch this,” Tikki said as she scrolled through the text.

She did not like the sound in her kwami’s voice. “Can you just give me the Coles Notes version?”

“Chat Noir was caught skulking around on one of the rooftops before you used your lucky charm.” On the screen, stills of Chat Noir were displayed along with a timestamp.

Fluff and Sass deftly worked the controls to scroll through the stills, showing a stop motion rendition of the events while Tikki narrated the key points. The more Marinette heard, the colder she became.

“He waited to attack until after the lucky charm,” Marinette murmured. Fresh tears burned behind her eyes. “He ambushed me.”

There was a particularly damning still of Chat Noir leaping at her from just behind her, baton in mid-swing. Marinette didn’t need to hear the words or see anymore. She flashed back to the feel of that first strike. Of being smashed through concrete. The pain and terror of those few moments overtook her. She barely registered her kwamis guiding her to her chaise.

He'd waited until after she’d cast her lucky charm to attack her. He’d waited until she was on a timer. Until she was vulnerable.

“He wanted my miraculous, didn’t he.” It wasn’t even a question anymore.

The kwamis, tellingly, remained silent.

#

“You failed.”

Adrien gritted his teeth. He stood before his father in his study, not unlike countless other times when he’d been reprimanded for some pointless infraction.

“There was no reason to suspect she was using more than one miraculous,” he said. “Normally when she unifies two, her outfit changes.”

His father nodded thoughtfully. “Yes, I noticed that. Instead of unifying her miraculouses, she must have overlaid one on top of the other, or activated the second miraculous at the same time the first one timed out.” His gaze sharpened and fixed on Adrien. “You see what I mean about how she does not truly respect you, don’t you Adrien? If she respected you, she would have shown you how to do these things. She should have given you a second miraculous of your own to have. Instead, she is hoarding them for herself, learning all their secrets, while you’re stuck left behind.”

Adrien looked away. He didn’t want to think it of Ladybug, but his father had a point. His father had several points, which he’d been drilling into his head for days now. Deep down, Adrien felt like it was wrong somehow. He couldn’t just throw away all his memories of the two of them. He still loved her.

He just needed to get her miraculous. Then he would have the power to undo time – to get his mother back, save his father, undo all the hurt caused by the akuma attacks. Ladybug would never even remember this nightmare, because it never would have happened. They could start over. Fresh. There would be no reason to hide their identities from one another. They could even still have a chance at love.

But the more these thoughts swirled in his head, the more he hated himself for them. They were his father’s words. His father’s thoughts. Part of him had wanted to scream at his father. To tell him he was wrong. To run away and find Ladybug and make a plan to bring Hawk Moth down for good. But the sight of his mother, cold as death, preserved in some sort of suspended animation – it kept freezing him in place. Going to Ladybug was tantamount to murdering his own mother. He couldn’t do that. No one could ask that of him. It was too much.

“Tomorrow,” Gabriel went on, seemingly unaware of his son’s inner turmoil, “we will use another akuma. But we will lay a different trap. Here is the plan.”

Gabriel explained, and Adrien listened, growing more and more ill.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lunch, Luka and Lila

Marinette awoke the next morning with a slowly growing sense of dread. Last night’s fight had eclipsed everything else in her mind. She got ready for school in a zombie-like state. She barely noted her parents. She barely ate. She barely registered the whispers and comments of the other students as she drifted vacantly toward class.

Alya, in contrast, seemed to be more alive than Marinette had ever seen her before.

She seemed to be both talking to Nino, mumbling to herself, and rapidly texting and scrolling on her phone. Marinette took a seat next to her, certain that last night’s excitement with Ladybug was the cause of Alya’s jitters.

“Dude, what did you do to your hair?” Nino asked.

“Huh?” Marinette turned confused eyes to Alya’s boyfriend.

Adrien, sitting next to him, turned and stared at her, stunned.

This seemed to break Alya from her trance. She looked up and paused also.

“Is there something on my face?” Marinette asked, nervously reaching up to touch her cheek. Had she made a mess of her makeup this morning? She knew she’d been really out of it, but makeup was one of those things she could do on autopilot.

“Your hair!” Alya exclaimed. She reached over and tugged a lock of loose hair so that the tips were on display. Tips which were now red. A very distinct Ladybug red.

“You dyed your hair, Marinette?” Adrien asked, puzzled.

“Uh, yeah.” Marinette continued to stare. Her midnight blue tresses now morphed to a warm red color about an inch from the ends.

“That’s amazing,” Alya went on, studying it. “It looks professionally done. Did you do it yourself?”

“Uh, yeah.”

Alya’s eyes lit up. “Is this for like Ladybug solidarity? You know, to show your support?”

“Uh, yeah.” 

Marinette felt like she should be able to say something more intelligent, but brain power seemed to be eaten up trying to process the fact that her hair was now partly red, and that she had managed to miss it completely during her entire morning.

The expression on Adrien’s face seemed unaccountably sad at Alya’s proclamation. She’d heard he was a Ladybug fan, so maybe he was troubled by the fact that Chat Noir had attacked his lady?

“I just can’t believe this is happening!” Alya went on, returning to her previous ranting. “I mean, who would’ve seen this twist coming? Chat betraying Ladybug? It’s unprecedented. Do you think it’s a lover’s quarrel?”

Alya pulled up a picture of Chat standing over Ladybug, his baton grinding her into the asphalt. “Look at his expression!” Alya crowed. “It looks like he’s – I don’t know – not happy about it? What do you think it means?”

Marinette had never liked the tone in Alya’s voice whenever she got onto a Ladybug-related tangent. It made her feel uncomfortable. It felt like Alya didn’t really see Ladybug as her own person, but rather a bit of entertainment who existed for the amusement of the people.

“It’s obvious Chat Noir has finally come to his senses,” an unwelcome, nasally yet familiar voice chimed in.

“No one asked you, Chloé,” said Alya, but she didn’t actually turn away from the snob, instead waiting expectantly for her to continue.

Chloé took a seat, nose in the air, Sabrina a half-step behind. “Well obviously Chat Noir’s realized that Ladybug’s a showboater and nothing more. She’s been hogging all the credit since Hawk Moth showed up on the scene. She never lets anyone else take center stage in any of the fights. She uses Chat Noir as a meat shield, swooping in at the last second to claim all the credit when he’s the one doing the real work.”

“What!?” Alya exclaimed alongside a chorus of other shouts.

Marinette couldn’t help but notice that the indignation was tinged with intrigue at this new possibility.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about! Ladybug’s a hero, and you’re just jealous that she snubbed you.”

“Yeah,” added Nino. “You’re practically a Hawk Moth groupie. No one’s going to believe you, Queenie.”

“Hmph. Suit yourself. No one cares what you losers think anyway.”

“Well now hold on a second,” Lila’s sickeningly sweet voice carried throughout the room. All eyes were drawn to her. Reluctantly, Marinette followed, listening intently. “Isn’t it a little weird that Hawk Moth shows up one day and then suddenly Ladybug and Chat Noir are there too? I mean, that seems like a bit of a strange coincidence.”

“Well obviously they only came out of hiding to combat Hawk Moth,” Rose piped in uncertainty.

“Ah, but think about it,” Lila went on, again in that perfectly bland tone that made her sound so convincing, as though she had no vested interest in the outcome. “Hawk Moth’s only ever wanted Ladybug’s and Chat Noir’s miraculouses. And all we know is that Ladybug’s refusing to give it to him. That’s what all this is about isn’t it? You know I love Ladybug to death, and she’s a good friend of mine. But still, she’s always been a little cagey about what all this super-fighting business is all about, you know? And I can’t help but wonder if maybe there’s more to the story? Like why hasn’t she ever told us what the deal is with these earrings? Why does Hawk Moth actually want them?” Lila let a moment pass for the others to digest before finishing the discussion. “For all we know, Ladybug stole the earrings from Hawk Moth and now he’s trying to get them back.”

A new, contemplative silence settled over the group as they considered Lila’s words. Marinette turned away only to catch sight of Adrien’s stupefied expression. It looked as though he were experiencing some sort of catharsis. Was he too falling for Lila’s bullshit?

It doesn’t matter, she told herself. None of it matters. She held back the angry tears and made a point of pulling her things out of her bag to get ready for the lesson. None of this mattered. She had a job to do.

And yet it did matter. She’d fought for this city. For these people. She’d rescued every single classmate of hers from akumas in the past. For them to even consider throwing away all her good deeds hurt.

A glance at Alya’s troubled expression had her biting her lip in worry. Et tu, Alya? If Lila’s honeyed poison could sway even the Ladyblogger….

Class began, but Marinette could not focus. She kept hearing Lila’s words slithering through her, seeping into her pores, deadlier than any akuma.

On her way out the door, she caught a comment from Max, who said, “… sixty-seven percent chance that Ladybug and Hawk Moth are secretly colluding….”

Marinette hurried along to her locker. She couldn’t listen to this. And yet with every minute that passed, that feeling of dread grew inside her heart. She still didn’t have a plan to deal with the next akuma. And now that Hawk Moth knew she’d be on guard, there was no telling what sort of tricks he would pull to try to get her earrings. Unifying miraculouses was only a partial solution. It didn’t give her extra protection from physical attacks. It also didn’t give her extra immunity from magical ones. All it would take would be to get tagged once by a magical power. There was no more Chat Noir to bail her out if that happened. The more she turned these thoughts over in her mind, the more scared she became.

She’d toyed with the thought of enlisting the aid of her allies once more, but seeing Alya’s troubled expression earlier that morning put paid to that idea. Lila’s hooks were sinking deeper and deeper into her friends. They could not be trusted.

She still didn’t know how Hawk Moth had gotten to Chat. For all she knew, he could do the same to the others. And this time, there was no Master Fu to guide her. She had to decide all on her own.

Morning classes whizzed by in a blur. She’d have to use Sass again tonight to catch up. Assuming she wasn’t killed by Chat Noir in the meantime.

The noon bell rang.

Alya and Nino grouped together with Adrien getting swept away by Chloé. No one even offered to sit with her for lunch. Not that it mattered. There was no way she would have been able to stomach all their superhero talk. She trudged to the front of the school where Luka was waiting. For a moment, she stopped at the top of the front steps, watching him. Unconsciously, she hugged herself. Did she really want to get into a relationship with someone? The part of her that yearned for human contact already felt so raw and broken from all the losses she’d suffered. She could hardly imagine what it would feel like to get close to someone – to invest her heart in them, only to be rejected once more.

Luka spotted her. His resulting smile was radiant and genuine, and it pushed back the doubts at least a little. Before she knew it, he was at her side, taking her bookbag from her. That was just so him. Always trying to ease the burden of those around him.

“Hi,” he said.

“Hi.”

There was no denying Luka was attractive, and she was definitely attracted to him. He was, perhaps, a little less put together than Adrien, but in a way, it made it easier for Marinette to relate. Whereas Adrien made her heart pound, Luka made her heart soar. As they walked back to her parents’ bakery – she’d insisted on keeping it simple – she couldn’t help but reflect that loving Luka would be easier than loving Adrien. No drama. No anxiety. Just an enveloping peace and calm.

“You’re troubled by something,” he said.

“I am,” she replied. They had just reached the intersection to cross the street to her home. “But I don’t want to talk about it.”

He smiled down at her. “I get the feeling you’re the strong, silent type.”

Tentatively, so as to make sure he had permission, he slipped an arm around her. She leaned into him, letting him hug her more tightly.

“I don’t think strong and silent are the words that describe me,” she said. “Hot and mess are more like it.”

It felt amazing to be held, she had to admit. It felt as though Luka were not only sharing his warmth with her, but also his strength.

The light switched to green. They parted slightly to walk. Marinette led him to the side entrance so they could avoid the bakery. A quick dash up a flight of stairs and they were soon in the kitchen.

“There’s some left over quiche,” Marinette said, poking through the fridge.

“Anything’s fine, Marinette.”

She warmed them up some food and took a seat next to him. “My parents will be down in the bakery for the lunch hour, so we probably won’t run into them.”

“I don’t mind meeting them,” he reassured her. “I’d like to say hello to the people that raised such a wonderful girl.”

Color bloomed in her cheeks as she looked down at her plate of food. How could he say something like that in such a matter-of-fact way, as though it were as plain and obvious as the color of the sky? She peeked up at him through her bangs, and saw that he was eating his lunch with the same serenity that he did everything else.

“I think you’re wonderful too,” she said finally.

Lunch passed in companionable silence. Luka was not prone to saying much, but, oddly, this did not bother Marinette. She was used to a frenetic pace in her thoughts and actions, and in those of the people around her. In that sense, Luka was a warm welcome – a change of pace from the normal whirlwind of her thoughts and emotions. A sort of emotional port in the storm.

When they returned back to school, Marinette leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, Luka.”

He nodded and gave her hand a final squeeze. “Anytime, Marinette.”

The way he spoke, the look in his eyes as he gazed upon her, made her feel charged. It was, in a way, the exact opposite of her experience with Adrien. With Adrien, she felt small and awkward. But with Luka, she felt bold and powerful.

“Tomorrow,” Marinette said. “I want to see you again… tomorrow.”

“I’d like that.” He waited patiently for her to continue.

“I… how about a coffee date after school?” she asked.

They hashed out the details and then parted. Marinette couldn’t stop the happy little skip that entered her step. Not Lila, nor Chloé, nor the hushed and anxious talk of Ladybug could bring her down from the high she was experiencing. She was going on a real date with a boy. A handsome, kind boy that made her feel warm and happy inside. It was not the same feeling that Adrien provoked in her, but it was no less magnificent. It was like the feeling of a warm summer day with wildflowers in full bloom, and sun shining on morning dew.

Screams from outside froze her in her tracks. The other students in the hall stopped and slowly drifted to the commotion outside on the street. Marinette, on the other hand, dashed away to go find a place to transform.

“Do you think Chat will be there?” Marinette asked anxiously from inside a bathroom stall.

“I don’t know, Marinette, but you need to be on your guard.”

“I’ll be ready to bug out at the first sign of trouble,” she said grimly.

Trixx poked his furry little orange head out of her bag as well. “We’ll be ready too.”

A minute later, Snakebug was yoyoing to the roof of the college. It was a clear, sunny day. No Chat Noir anywhere to be seen, though there was always the possibility he was hiding. Fluff was still manning her computer at home, and was busy feeding her a constant stream of updates from the news feeds. Barkk and Longg were tucked inside her hair, each holding onto a pigtail and ready to pull to warn her of a sneak attack from behind. Between her kwami’s eyes and the power of the second chance, she was as prepared as she was going to get.

Down below, a familiar brute was stomping around the street.

“Stoneheart?” she asked. “Ivan? He’d seemed happy that morning. Not that Hawk Moth needed much to get his claws into people. She zeroed in on a familiar pendant around his neck, which Mylene had given him recently. Easy peasy.

Stoneheart was fixated on the fleeing citizens on the street, so Ladybug came in from overhead, using a lamp post to swing herself onto his shoulder. One quick yank of the necklace and this would be over. Only, instead of alighting on the brute’s shoulder, she went through it.

“Wha-?”

Orange smoke filled her vision. Before she could reach for her miraculous to reset time, a tentacle wrapped itself around her and squeezed, pinning her arms to her sides and locking her in place. She was yanked with shoulder-dislocating force and slammed head first into the asphalt.

#

“That’s enough,” Chat growled, twirling his baton agitatedly. “She can’t fight back. She’s unconscious.”

The kraken-like sentimonster continued to smash Ladybug into the ground. Four, five, six times. Cement shattered and asphalt cratered every place where her now limp body had struck.

A purple butterfly materialized over Volpina’s face. “Ladybug will not escape this time. If I have to powder all her bones to do it, then that is what I will do. In an hour, this will all be over.”

Chat Noir’s keen eyes picked out the blood that was starting to form on the ground. Tears sprang from his eyes. This couldn’t be happening. He was standing there idly by while his friend and partner was being brutalized. This was worse than anything he could have imagined. My father is doing this, he thought with a little hysteria. My father is pulverizing a girl’s body into paste.

The sentimonster raised Ladybug up higher into the air than ever before – no doubt aiming for the final, killing blow. Her head lolled listlessly around. Chat forced himself to watch, every second of inactivity ratcheting up his self-loathing. He wished, suddenly, with all his heart, that it was him up there instead of her. If he could have traded places, he would have in a heartbeat. Shame coursed through his veins. Misery burned him up from the inside. Yet he remained immobilized.

The next thing he knew, the world was exploding. He caught a flash of multicolored motes of light rocketing out of Ladybug. No, not motes of light, he realized with sudden terror. Kwamis. Lots of kwamis. Kwamis who looked really pissed.

He launched himself backward on instinct just as the ground around him shattered. The sun had vanished behind a wall of black clouds. Rain came down in sheets, soaking him with icy water within seconds.

A distant roar of fury rattled his bones. Barely through the hail and water, he was struck by a dismembered tentacle.

Volpina was there by his side once again, shouting at him. But even from three feet away, she was barely visible, and her words were swept away by the storm. Chat reached out for her to help her get away from whatever this was, but a flash of lightning and a boom of thunder drove him back. When his vision cleared, Volpina was laying face down in a puddle, her body smoking from the lightning strike. Before his eyes, he watched her de-transform back to Lila. A scorched butterfly detached itself from her and flopped into the water, dead.

Suddenly anxious to get the hell out of there, he snatched Lila in his arms and vaulted away to get her to a hospital.

#

“Miraculous ladybug.” Tikki let the magic course through her fingers and into Marinette’s cold and broken body.

The kwamis all watched anxiously as Marinette remained unconscious.

“This is dangerous,” Wayzz said. “Our powers cannot be controlled unless used through our mortal avatars.”

“We have no choice,” replied Tikki. “Marinette needs us.”

Wayzz had no response. He merely gazed at the young girl with haunted eyes.

A couple of the kwamis brought a small towel and began to try wiping her down from all the rain water that had showered her. It’d been a struggle carrying her limp body back to her balcony, through the window and onto her bed, but they’d managed it somehow. Only now thirty minutes had passed, and Marinette still wouldn’t wake.

“How badly was she injured?” Wayzz asked.

“Her skull was fractured in three places,” Tikki said. “A vein had ruptured in her brain. Her right arm had fourteen breaks. Ten broken ribs. A crushed kidney and pancreas. Both her legs were broken. Need I say more? Every strike by that monster could have turned a normal human to paste. Hawk Moth tried to murder her today. He’s pulling out all the stops.”

“If he has Chat Noir in his clutches, then his victory is almost complete,” Trixx said. “Perhaps, instead of remaining, we should take the earrings and simply flee. It is clear that Marinette cannot stand up to the combined power of Hawk Moth, Mayura, and Chat Noir. Our intervention today will have serious, long-lasting repercussions. Longg’s storm is disrupting weather patterns all the way from here to Berlin. And look-“ he gestured at Marinette.

Her skin seemed to take on a slight glow, and her eyes – even through her eyelids, they could make out the blue of her eyes.

“Our magic is beginning to affect her,” Pollen replied sadly. “She cannot be channeling so much of it. She is wearing too many miraculouses. Using too many powers too quickly. And now with you pouring the miraculous cure into her broken body….”

“I am not leaving her,” Tikki said, a tear slipping from her eye. “No matter what. If we leave her now – if I leave her – it will be one betrayal too many. I will talk to her, and we will make a plan to finish this.” Then in a growl that seemed to make the very fabric of reality quiver. “Hawk Moth assumes he can control us as one might control a mere animal. I think it is time that he be made to understand the depth of his error in carrying on as he has.”

The other kwamis nodded solemnly, their eyes still fixed with sadness on their young charge.

#

“This is wrong, father.”

“The only thing wrong about this is your complete and absolute failure to carry out a single task.”

Father and son stared each other down from across the large oak desk in the elder Agreste’s study.

“It was your plan. Your sentimonster. Your akuma. All of it failed. This failure is all yours. Just as all the failures for the entire year have been yours.”

“Don’t you dare talk to me like that, Adrien. We almost had those earrings today. If you hadn’t run away terrified of a bit of rain, then you could have gone after Ladybug. She was unconscious and near death, and the only thing that stood in your way was your own cowardice.”

“That bit of rain put Lila Rossi in the hospital.” Adrien kept his gaze firmly fixed on his father. “If it’d been me that was hit by lightning and in the hospital, you’d still only be angry that you didn’t get your earrings.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Gabriel replied dismissively. “Your suit would have protected you from a lightning strike. You need to push forward to seize victory, Adrien. You can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. I did not build my fashion empire by being a wallflower or by being scared of my own shadow. Or by giving up at the first sign of trouble. Ultimate power, Adrien. It is nearly within our grasp. And with it, we can rewrite reality itself. We can live in a world free of regret. Free of pain. Never forget that.”

“Well it won’t happen now,” Adrien said bitterly. “You can’t seriously expect to get into a fight with Ladybug now. You saw what those kwamis did. The kwami magic has effects seen for hundreds of kilometres in all directions. A tornado nearly flattened Versailles. And it’s been six hours, and still no miraculous cure.”

“The lack of a cure may be a good sign. She may be dead already,” mused Gabriel. “Or possibly in a coma. I’ll have Nathalie check the hospitals for any unusual patients that might have come in.”

The detached, almost hopeful tone that Gabriel had when speaking of Ladybug’s death caused a fresh wave of sickness to well up within Adrien. He wanted to scream at his father. To rage against the man’s cold-hearted, neglectful, evil attitude. Yet he couldn’t. It was as if there was a wall – an invisible, impermeable membrane that separated him from the power to take that step and reject his father’s will outright.

“It is clear that there is only one way to succeed in defeating Ladybug,” Gabriel declared finally. “We must discover her secret identity and strike while she is de-transformed. Then and only then will she be vulnerable. If all goes well, we may be able to seize the earrings and the rest of the jewels at the same time, thus robbing her of all power to oppose us, and having all the power necessary to save your mother.”

Adrien couldn’t listen to this anymore. “May I be excused?”

His father waved him away, and Adrien bolted from his presence. He retreated to his bedroom, where he crawled under the covers. Plagg lay in a basket feet away, barely acknowledging him.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled into the silence.

He felt weak and shivery. This whole week had been one long, horrible nightmare. And the only promise his father had given him was that it would end soon. But it wasn’t ending. It was just going on and on. And getting worse and worse. He didn’t know who Ladybug was under the mask, but the idea of attacking her while she lay asleep in her home – it seemed somehow worse than the horrible things he’d already done.

Adrien started to cry. He didn’t want this. He didn’t want any of it. Not for the first time, he debated fleeing Paris altogether. Or finding Ladybug and giving her the ring. Or giving the ring to his father. Anything to make the pain stop. Slowly, uneasily, he drifted off to a restless sleep, dreaming of combining the miraculouses himself and erasing this nightmare reality from ever having happened.


	3. Chapter 3

Marinette studied herself in the mirror for several minutes, occasionally flicking off and on the light switch. The sixteen kwamis fluttered around her, anxious and worried.

“I think the glow has subsided,” she said finally. “I’m still a little shinier than normal, but it’s not noticeable. You can really only see it if you’re looking for it, or if it’s really dark.”

“That too might fade,” said Tikki.

“The hair’s kind of a problem,” she mused. “I guess all I can do is go with the dye-job excuse and hope no one question sit too much.” She touched her eyebrows, which had turned ladybug red overnight. Her hair had also developed red streaks through it. 

“I don’t like it,” Tikki fretted. “It makes you stand out, and it connects Marinette to Ladybug. The people around you are going to wonder, and they might put two and two together. The glamour only protects you so much.”

“Well it’s a good thing we decided not to use the miraculous cure to fix all the damage then,” Marinette replied lightly as she left the bathroom. “School’s going to be closed for a couple of days.”

“I hate to say it,” Tikki went on, “but maybe you should cancel your date with Luka.”

Marinette paused and considered. It was a sensible suggestion. But it still wrangled. Luka was her attempt to give herself a slice of normalcy. To feel a little bit wanted, and to soothe the raw ache of betrayal that burned in her heart.

“I can’t,” she said to Tikki finally. “I’m sorry. I need this.”

Tikki nodded without further argument. She floated up to Marinette and put one hand on her shoulder in reassurance. “I understand, Marinette. We support you. However, I think you should maybe invest in a bigger purse. That way you can fit more of us in their comfortably.”

Marinette smiled, glancing around her room to see all the kwami watching her. They had all been very solicitous over the past twenty-four hours. Just the knowledge that they had broken cover to go to battle and save her filled her with a fiery warmth she’d never felt before. It gave her strength in a way that no one else’s support ever had. Not Master Fu. Not Chat Noir. Not the other heroes. No one.

“I will, and thank you… to all of you.” She turned and gazed at them all. “It’s no exaggeration to say that I’d be dead right now if it weren’t for you. After the loss of Master Fu – I didn’t think my world could grow any darker. I didn’t think I could feel any more despair. But this past week… Chat Noir’s betrayal….” A tear slipped from her eyes. “You keep me going.”

“Group hug!” cried Fluff.

Marinette’s eyes widened as sixteen kwamis rushed her en masse. New tears, these of joy, slipped down her cheeks. She reached out and patted each one in turn. She giggled as they all snuggled up to her.

“I love you all, you know that, don’t you? I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“You don’t have to worry about it,” said Tikki. “We’re not going anywhere Marinette.”

“Yeah,” added Roarr, “and if Hawk Moth thinks he can take us away from you, he’s got another thing coming.”

“I was thinking about that,” Marinette began, her voice and thoughts turning contemplative. She carried the kwami over to the chaise where she sat. They all continued to cling to her. “Hawk Moth controls where and when I am, and right now, there’s nothing I can do about it. That puts me at a huge disadvantage. I decisively lost the last two engagements. And not only that, but I’ve had to pretty much show Hawk Moth all my cards to escape. The next attack he plans is going to be that much more dangerous. Imagine if he’d used an illusion to hide Chat Noir, and Chat Noir had hit me with his cataclysm.”

The kwamis looked at her with wide eyes, suddenly full of horrified understanding.

Marinette continued more softly. “All it would take is one brush of his ring, and it’s game over.”

“You don’t know that,” said Tikki carefully, but she too looked shaken by the idea. “I don’t think any of us could know what would happen if a suit was cataclysmed.”

“Nothing good,” replied Marinette determinedly, “but if Hawk Moth gets desperate, he’ll play that card.”

“What do you think we should do? Mullo asked, wringing his hands together nervously.

“We’re going to change the rules of engagement,” Marinette replied. Her eyes shined a little brighter. “The next time an akuma attacks, we’ll be ready. Here’s the plan.”

#

“You look radiant, Marinette,” Luka said. His gaze drifted to her hair. “And I really like what you’ve done with your hair.”

“You don’t think it’s too – I don’t know – trendy?” she asked, absently fiddling with a lock.

“It’s striking,” he replied. His eyes returned to focus on hers.

How was it possible that he could communicate so much with just a glance? There was reassurance and warmth and support and love all rolled into one.

“And I don’t think it’s about being trendy. Not for you,” he went on more thoughtfully. “It suits your personality. You care about everyone. That compassion shines through in everything you do. Even in the little things.”

Marinette peered down into her hot chocolate. She was sure she was re-heating it from her blush alone. Was this what it was like to have a boyfriend? Again, she couldn’t help but compare her few experiences with Luka with all the craziness that had surrounded her relationship with Adrien. Adrien had never made her feel beautiful and wanted, no matter how hard she tried. But here, with Luka, she didn’t have to try at all.

They were sitting in a café situated between their homes. Even though it was a normally popular spot on a main road, it was now almost totally empty, the absence of the cure being cast following the previous day’s akuma battle having spooked the locals. The last images anyone had seen of her before Longg’s storm hit was that of her being held captive and smashed violently against the roadway. For all anyone knew, she’d been mortally wounded and had crawled off to go die in a ditch somewhere. She knew she should’ve gone out last night to at least be seen, to reassure everyone that she was still alive and kicking, but she hadn’t been able to muster up the courage to face the world.

“What do you think about what happened yesterday?” Marinette asked. She couldn’t say she was interested in hearing more about it since her kwamis had taken to giving her hourly reports on all the speculations from news programs and talk shows. Yet it would be strange if she didn’t make a token effort to bring it up.

“I don’t know, to be honest,” Luka said, fiddling with his cup of cider. “Ladybug’s got a lot on her plate. I don’t really know why she’s not calling for help. Even if her team’s been outed, it’s better than facing this new challenge alone. Or she could at least pick new people to rely on.”

That had been a major point of confusion for a lot of the commentators. Everyone knew there were more miraculouses, and everyone knew that Ladybug had routinely sought support when overwhelmed in the past. In hindsight, she shouldn’t have been surprised that Luka would have the same attitude. He had been nothing but caring and supportive for her, letting her dictate the pace of their relationship, even though Marinette was moving at a glacially slow pace. It would therefore stand to reason that he would also have an urge to support Ladybug in the same way.

Marinette hesitated to reply, but the conversation demanded it. She formulated her words carefully so as to not give anything away. “Maybe she doesn’t know who to trust. If Chat Noir can turn on her, then whose to say the others won’t also?”

He nodded. “Yes, I suppose. I guess the real question is, what changed with Chat Noir?”

Inwardly, Marinette sighed. That was the big question, wasn’t it? She had tried contacting him via their kwami links, but he’d rebuffed all attempts. In a way though, it made things easier. She wasn’t sure what she would have done if he’d responded. The moment he’d struck the first blow, he’d damaged more than her body. No matter what happened, she didn’t think she could trust him again. Especially not after yesterday with Volpina. For the brief moments where they’d been in her field of vision, she’d registered Chat Noir talking to Volpina, a purple butterfly glowing over her face. He’d been talking to Hawk Moth. He’d been talking to him while she was repeatedly being brained against the unforgiving ground. The image of the two of them in close proximity twisted her insides up into something jagged.

The buzz of their phones brought her back to the present. Akuma alert. She checked the address. Six blocks away. Not too close, but not too far.

Around them, the few other patrons present were gathering their things to escape. Funny how, up until yesterday, people treated the akuma attacks like a spectator sport. But with the sudden absence of a miraculous cure putting everything to rights afterward, people had grown a lot more sensible.

Luka tapped his screen to cancel the alert notification. “Do you want to leave? We could hole up at the liberty for an hour until it passes.”

Marinette downed the rest of her drink. “It’s probably best I return home so my parents don’t worry. Just give me a sec to use the bathroom.”

A moment later, she was hiding in one of the stalls and opening her purse. Trixx, Sass, and Mullo floated out with Tikki, Roarr, Kaalki, and Longg remaining tucked away but watching.

“All right you three. It’s game time,” she began, as if she were a coach giving a pep talk. “You’re the sneakiest and fastest fliers we got. Your job is to go scout out the AO, and report back to Fluff. She’ll relay critical information to me via text. Once we have an idea who’s there and what their most likely strategy is, we’ll execute the appropriate counter-offensive.” She gazed at each of them, imparting the gravity of the situation. “This is it, kwamis. If we play our cards right, we could be facing the beginning of the end of Hawk Moth.”

“You can count on ussssss,” said Sass.

“I know I can, kwamis. Let Operation Swift Justice commence.”

The trio of kwamis grimly flew out of the stall and through the far wall.

“Let luck be with them,” Marinette said to the remaining kwamis in her bag.

“Let luck be with us all,” Tikki whispered back.

And with that, Marinette went to go finish her date.

#

“Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous.” Chloé swooped in through the apartment window, folding her arms across her chest and buzzing agitatedly at Hawk Moth and Mayura.

“Get back out there,” Hawk Moth ground out through gritted teeth. “You being here is endangering the mission.”

“What mission?” she asked sarcastically. “It’s been ninety minutes and everyone’s already run for cover. Where’s Ladypest? You promised me she’d show up. Anyone I was going to sting, I’ve already done. Now I’m just buzzing around doing nothing but looking pretty.”

“And she will. Get out there, or I’ll take your powers away. Possibly while you’re in mid-flight.”

“It’s a Friday night, you know,” Chloé went on. “I could be doing way better things than hanging out with that loser, Chat Noir.”

Hawk Moth used his miraculous to grip Chloé’s mind, and squeezed. Her eyes bugged out, and she scrabbled at her throat as if she were being choked.

“Have I made myself clear?” Hawk Moth demanded. 

He released the possession. Chloé threw him a dirty look before flying out the window.

Hawk Moth turned to Mayura. “Is the sentimonster ready?” He already knew the answer. Mayura, at least, was competent, but he needed the reassurance – the feeling of control that someone in his circle of allies was capable of doing their job. And in any case, she was the lynchpin behind this strategy. Not the Bourgeois brat, nor his own dough-brained son. No, they were the distraction this time. Mayura’s sentimonster, a flying insect-sized chameleon was the true star of this show. The only thing the children needed to do was put up enough of a convincing fight to ensure that Ladybug had no reason to suspect there was a second gambit in play.

“Yes,” replied Mayura. “The tracer-bug is currently in Chloé’s hair. Once battle is joined, I will redirect the bug to its ultimate target.”

And from there, they only needed to wait for Ladybug to return home, whereupon Mayura and Hawk Moth would follow, ambushing her in her sleep.

“Where are you, you stupid bug!” Chloé screamed. She was hovering high in the air, near the rooftops, in plain view of everyone and everything. She looked in every respect like a queen surveying her domain. “Come and fight you pathetic coward! I’ll show you what a real superhero is-”

The violence that erupted was sudden and brutal. Hawk Moth barely had time to take in the dark, solitary figure that landed atop a distant building before a projectile sawed vertically through Chloé’s wings in a spray of blood. The bladed yoyo sliced up her back, up her neck and through her hair, slicing through the akumatized hairpin and retracting with the akuma in tow. Chloé plummeted, screaming all the way until she hit the cement below.

Chat Noir had leapt down to catch Chloé, effectively putting him out of the fight for at least a few seconds. That fool. He needed to engage Ladybug long enough for the tracer bug to have been delivered. If Ladybug fled, the whole plan would have been for naught.

But Ladybug did not flee. It was dumb luck that she followed Chat Noir down to the street. Hawk Moth did not bother following what happened next. He only cared for Mayura to confirm.

Finally, she nodded. “The package is delivered.”

Hawk Moth let out a breath. Finally. This would all soon be over.

#

Chat Noir laid Chloé carefully on the ground. Once the akuma had been trapped, she had reverted to an ordinary teenage girl. But the wounds remained, pumping blood sluggishly into the cool evening air.

Chloé’s take down was the single most extraordinary act of skill he’d ever seen Ladybug perform. She’d made that shot from more than a hundred metres distance, and with almost no preparation time. From landing to de-evilizing, the entire process had taken less than two seconds. It probably meant she’d used up the snake miraculous, so at least he wouldn’t have to contend with that if fighting broke out.

He knew he’d be in trouble for trying to save Chloé. He was supposed to be harrying Ladybug to ensure she stayed long enough to be tagged by the sentimonster, but he just couldn’t seem to muster up the will to care when he saw the blood, and his oldest friend falling to her death.

Nevertheless, his father’s criticisms were so ingrained in his mind that he could hear them already worming their way inside his head. Could hear the tone and inflection. Could see the disgust and disdain in his eyes. Could feel the heat of embarrassment inside, and the prickle of tears burning. Because of course he was never good enough. Nothing was ever good enough for his father.

He heard her land twenty paces away. Just the fact that she was so close made his fingers tremble and his mouth to go dry. She’d practically eviscerated Chloé. A week ago, she never would’ve done such a thing. A week ago, she never would’ve needed to.

Slowly, he got to his feet and turned to face her. The patterns on her suit were different enough that he couldn’t tell what all miraculouses she was using.

“Ladybug,” he said.

“Chat,” she replied evenly. Her gaze drifted down to Chloé’s body. “Hawk Moth is running out of teenage girls to throw at me.”

There was something unaccountably cold in her voice. Realization struck him after a second. “You’re not planning to use the miraculous cure?”

“I will… after you hand over your miraculous.”

He glanced over at the still frozen victims visible in the distance. “The victims,” he began hesitantly.

Even from this distance, he could see that Ladybug’s smile was as cold as a glacier. “Is that concern I hear? Your compassion and empathy truly know no bounds, Chat Noir.”

He deserved that. But still, it was too out of character for her to permit the effects of the akuma’s powers to linger. “You’re not like that, Ladybug. You’re a hero. You won’t let these people suffer longer than necessary.”

“And yet if I cast the cure, Chloé Bourgeois will be back to fighting form. That means returning an ally to Hawk Moth’s side. He’s got enough of those as it is, wouldn’t you agree? But if you’re so concerned, you know how to end this. All you have to do is hand over your miraculous.”

Her words sounded disturbingly like his father’s in that moment. “Is that why you didn’t cast the cure yesterday?” He’d never imagined she’d make a decision that was so coldly pragmatic. “Paris can’t afford miraculous combat without the cure.”

“Let’s not reverse the roles here, kitty. The harm caused here today is by your hand, not mine.”

He looked down at his oldest friend’s motionless body. Her face was deathly pale. He knew the cure had brought people back from the dead, but it’d always been cast within minutes after the fighting had ended. If Ladybug waited hours or even days, would it still have the same effect? What if the miraculous cure treated Chloé differently because she willingly worked with Hawk Moth? Or because Ladybug was the one to deliver the killing blow.

“If you hand over the earrings, we can fix all of this. We can restore Paris. We can undo all the akumatizations. We can save lives.”

There was a moment in which he dared to hope that she would concede. It was a foolish hope, he knew, but he believed it deep down in the same way that he believed his father could really wish all his problems away once he got the power of the ladybug and cat miraculouses.

Ladybug’s response became even frostier. “You can pry my miraculous from my cold, dead hands.”

He didn’t want that. He didn’t want to fight her. He didn’t want to win; didn’t want to lose. He didn’t know what he wanted anymore. It was like he was stuck between two opposing forces. Like he were a satellite caught at the Lagrange point between his father’s and Ladybug’s will, suspended, motionless, trapped without any leverage to change the course of events in any direction.

“I don’t want to fight you,” he confessed.

Something in his tone must have conveyed his inner turmoil, because the ice around her thawed slightly. “I don’t want to fight you either.”

“Then why?” he asked. “If you give me the earrings, I won’t give them to hawk Moth. I’ll cast the wish myself. And once I’m done, I’ll give you the earrings back right away. This whole thing could be over within minutes. No more fighting. No more pain. We can all have what we want. And then we can just walk away.”

The sentiments, which had seemed to make so much sense when his father said them, now felt clunky and stupid coming from him. Despite that, hope surged when Ladybug adopted an expression of sympathy.

“Tell me what the wish is, kitty, and I’ll make it for us.”

For a brief, blinding moment, he considered it. Who cared who actually made the wish? But then he was doused with the cold reality of it. She was tricking him. There was no way she’d up and agree to make the wish. Not when she didn’t even know what it entailed – something he couldn’t explain without giving away clues to his identity. But then another thought bloomed in his mind, more tantalizing than all the others. Did it really matter if she was tricking him? He wanted out of this. If he just gave her the earrings, if he did it under the pretense that he believed she would help him to save his mother, then did it really count as betraying his father?

He'd lived with the knowledge his mother had been gone a long time already. He’d grieved for her, had moved on, even despite all the uncertainties that had surrounded her disappearance. Could he go back to that? Could he pick up where he’d left off as though nothing had happened? His father being Hawk Moth, his mother’s corpse-like slumber beneath the mansion, the confessions and admissions that had come fast and furious, all accompanied by his father’s cajoling, had overwhelmed him. It’d transported him back to those first few grief-filled days after the announcement of her disappearance. The slow, aching acceptance as each day passed that she wasn’t coming back. To be back in that limbo, that not knowing slicing him up inside every time he thought of her… could it be that letting his mother die was the right decision?

“I can’t do that,” he said finally. If he wanted to, even if he could take that step, he couldn’t do it here and now, with his father and Nathalie watching. Even if they weren’t here, he didn’t know if he could. Just the idea of it made his heart pound and his palms grow slick with sweat. He glanced down at his miraculous, green pawprint pulsing serenely on its inky surface. A week ago, he’d been terrified at losing his miraculous. Yet like his mother, was it simply another thing he had to learn to give up?

The expression of sympathy on Ladybug’s face peeled away to reveal disgust. “Then there’s nothing more to talk about, is there?” She launched her yoyo skyward.

She was going to leave. And she was going to take the sentimonster with her. Without knowing that she was being tracked. This whole thing could be over tonight. Chat Noir’s heart began to race. The image of Hawk Moth and Mayura, slinking into her bedroom in the dark, Ladybug unaware of the danger – he didn’t want that. His father had already shown a willingness to kill. With everything that’d happened, he was certain his father would take no chances. If Ladybug died, any of the active miraculouses would immediately go dormant, which meant no more kwamis to interfere. It would be the only way to be sure. He knew it. His father knew it. Letting her go without warning her was a death sentence.

In his mind, he reached out a hand, he called out to her, he begged and pleaded and professed all his thoughts and feelings. In his mind, she listened, and they embraced, and they zipped away together. Away from the fighting and the madness. Away from Hawk Moth and his family name. Even from his mother. To where they went he couldn’t quite envision, but surely, surely, anywhere was better than here, so long as they were together.

But all that remained only in the realms of his imagination, bearing no more substance than a dream. 

Ladybug vanished from sight.

#

“Voyage.”

Ladybug, still rocketing up and away from Chat, vanished through a portal, reappearing in a bathroom at Francoise Dupont. She was trusting that the school would be completely empty, as the school had been closed for the day due to the previous akuma attack.

She de-transformed and leaned against the wall. Her conversation with Chat Noir had been exhausting. He really wanted her earrings. He was really working with Hawk Moth. She had expected as much, but to hear him confirm it had been no less depressing.

“Are you okay?” The way Tikki asked the question told Marinette that Tikki already knew she wasn’t.

“I still just can’t believe it,” she said. “He’s working with Hawk Moth.”

“He’s obviously been turned around in the head,” Tikki replied. “I don’t know how Hawk Moth did it.”

“I’m going to find out,” Marinette replied determinedly. “And then there’s going to be a reckoning. The gloves are off, Tikki.”

“You need to do it fast, Marinette. Eventually, Hawk Moth will get frustrated and resort to akumatizing Chat Noir as a means of combining the power of the miraculous with the power of the akuma in an effort to overwhelm you.”

The blood drained from Marinette’s face. “Fuck, Tikki.” She turned suddenly haunted eyes to her kwami. “I never thought of that. How could I have not thought of that? We need to stop them as quickly as possible. No matter what it takes. I can’t face Chat Blanc. Not again.”

“Their end is coming,” Tikki soothed. “Your plan to use kwamis to follow them back to their home is brilliant. We just need them to report back and then we can strike. This whole thing could be over by morning. Chloé may very well have been the last akuma you ever face.”

Marinette closed her eyes and leaned her forehead so that she was touching her kwami. “I hope you’re right. These last three days have been terrifying. I don’t think I can keep up this pace.”

“I can’t see how we’re going to fail. Trixx and the others know what they’re doing.” Tikki floated to Marinette’s side and nuzzled her cheek. “My only concern was the mystery sentimonster.”

Marinette opened her eyes and nodded. “Yeah. I kept waiting for it to strike.”

“But why didn’t it?” asked Tikki with worry.

“Maybe it wasn’t meant to attack, but rather to follow me home. Hawk Moth has done that before twice. Once with Vanisher on Hero’s Day and once with himself and Mayura during Heart Hunter.” Marinette furrowed her brow in concentration. “Despite all odds, he saw me escape twice over the past two days. He had the element of surprise on his side both times. And yesterday-“ she thought back to the moment where she’d been caught by the tentacle and smashed into the ground. “-he must be intimidated. He’d sprung the perfect trap yesterday. I was trapped and near death and surrounded by enemies. I had no business escaping. And yet, I not only escaped, but I wounded one of his agents.” She looked at Tikki with wide, understanding eyes as she opened herself up to Hawk Moth’s thought processes. “He’s scared. He doesn’t know if he can beat me in a straight up fight. Even with Chat Noir’s aid. So he’s defaulting to known tactics. He wants to follow me back to my home. That explains why he and Mayura were there hiding. Mayura to exert fine control over the sentimonster, and Hawk Moth to protect her.”

“that does sound like a plausible explanation for everything.” Tikki’s gaze sharpened. “Presumably the teleportation should have thrown the sentimonster off your trail.”

Marinette threw a nervous glance over her shoulder, suddenly not feeling so safe. “Yeah, of course. It’s not like they were expecting me to teleport.”

But that wasn’t strictly true. Hawk Moth knew about the teleportation power. Chat sure knew about it. She really needed to investigate the powers of the other kwamis. If she were going to win this game, it would be because she came at them from an unexpected angle.

“It’s not like Mayura can control sentimonsters from this distance anyway,” Tikki reassured.

“Yeah.” But that was really just an assumption based on the fact she’d come out to control Sentibug. There was no telling if her powers had grown since then, or if Hawk Moth had unlocked knew abilities through the stolen tablet.

She pursed her lips. The stakes were too high to leave anything to chance.

“There’s no way I’m going to be able to relax tonight,” she decided. “I’m way too wired.”

“It’s fine,” Tikki soothed. “Besides, Trixx’s crew will be following Hawk Moth throughout the evening. They’ll keep an eye out and report if there’s any trouble on the horizon. You’ll need your rest for the final battle.”

“I don’t know, Tikki.” It was only eight o’clock, so it wasn’t as though there was any pressing need to go home. But where else was there to go?

“You could see Luka again,” Tikki ventured. “I bet he’d like that.”

“I just saw him. Isn’t that a little weird?”

But then again, their date had been cut short. And the more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea. Luka was easy to spend time with, and he had an almost miraculous ability to soothe her nerves. That was something she sorely needed. As much as she might have wanted to delay the ultimate battle with Hawk Moth, she knew she wouldn’t be able to wait. Not once Trixx returned with his identity in hand.

“Hey, Tikki, you know Chat’s identity, don’t you?”

“You know the magic prevents me from telling you anything about him, Marinette.”

“But then why can Trixx-“

Tikki must have been waiting for this question, because she was quick to explain. “The rules are different if the miraculous is being used for dark purposes. Trixx still won’t be able to say Hawk Moth’s civilian name, but he will have more flexibility about giving you circumstantial clues, like pointing out the location of his home on a map.”

“Are you saying that Chat’s not using his miraculous for dark purposes?” Her voice was rife with indignation. “Tikki, he broke my ribs.”

“That’s not the same as creating akumas, which are a corruption of the very magic itself. Besides, you should be thankful for these rules. Otherwise, Chat Noir, or even Hawk Moth, could’ve interrogated Plagg and gotten your identity before you ever knew he’d betrayed you. It’s protecting you more than it’s protecting him in this case.”

Well that was a relief she supposed, but more so that Tikki had already considered these things. Her kwami was just so good that way, always keeping an eye on her and double-checking her plans for anything she might have overlooked. Marinette felt a fresh swell of love for her tiny friend and companion. “You’re right, Tikki. You’re always right. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Well I’m not going anywhere,” Tikki said, smiling. “So let’s go relax with your paramour. And in the meantime, we’ll wait for the others to report back.”

“He’s not my paramour!” Marinette turned away to futilely hide the blush before realizing there was one way to escape the embarrassment. “Tikki, spots on!”

#

Hawk Moth stared at the spot Ladybug had just occupied. “Did she… teleport?”

“I believe so,” Mayura replied.

This was ridiculous. Ladybug was growing too powerful too quickly. It was as though every time they attacked her, she learned and adapted and came back twice as tough. She’d been wearing at least three miraculouses, and possibly a fourth, now that his son had explained the nature of the snake miraculous. From everything he’d understood of the miraculouses, wearing more than two should’ve been impossible. Even combining the butterfly and peacock had left him feeling drained.

“We need to end this,” he muttered, turning to Mayura. “Did she leave your range?”

“Yes. I can no longer sense my sentimonster.” Mayura raised a placating hand. “However, I constructed it so that it would remain in its dormant state without further instructions. It should therefore still be tangled in her hair.”

Hawk Moth let out a breath. At least Mayura had brains. “Let’s go collect my son and retreat.”

“Do you not wish to follow her?”

“There is no telling where she teleported to,” Hawk Moth replied. “For all we know, she is de-transformed and lost amidst crowds of other people. If she spots us leaping across rooftops in her vicinity, then we will be outed. I am not giving up this chance to track her down. Let her return home and lower her guard. Then we will strike tonight while she sleeps.”

“If I may suggest,” Mayura said. “send Adrien out with his driver. That will not appear unusual. It will also mean that we can find our target more quickly. The longer we wait, the greater the chance that Ladybug may inadvertently dislodge the sentimonster. For example, if she returns home and takes a shower.”

“Yes, of course.” Hawk Moth nodded. His own paranoia had almost gotten the better of him. “That is an excellent suggestion, Mayura.” He looked at her with affection. “I could not have done this without you. But soon, it will be over.”

#

Chat Noir continued to kneel before Chloé’s body. She was still passed out, and the wound continued to bleed. There was no way to help her without leaving her or de-transforming. Surely his father would come and deal with this. He brushed a lock of her hair from her face. Her skin had grown cool to the touch, and the air was thick with the smell of blood drying on asphalt.

A minute after Ladybug left, Hawk Moth and Mayura landed next to him.

“Come,” Hawk Moth said. “There is work to be done. This affair is almost over.” The supervillain beckoned him to retreat to the rooftops.

“You’re going to just leave her here?” Chat Noir asked incredulously.

“That’s Ladybug’s doing,” his father replied dismissively. “If she doesn’t have the decency to clean up her own mess, it’s not our problem. Besides, the only thing that can aid Miss Bourgeois are the earrings. If Ladybug is so irresponsible as to not use them, then we will have to take them from her and use them ourselves.”

I can’t keep doing this, Chat Noir thought as his father laid out the next phase of their plan. I just can’t. Yet his only response to the plan was, “How will I find her? I can’t sense the sentimonster.”

“There is a second sentimonster linked to the first. It will act like a compass, pointing you in the right direction.”

A tiny bug buzzed over to him and nestled itself in his hair. Its multitude of legs prickled on his scalp, gently tugging him in the direction it wanted him to go.

So this was it then. If he carried out this last act for his father, it could very well net him Ladybug’s identity. Funny, how he’d wanted to know for so long, and now, in a twist of fate, he was going to get his wish.

He texted the driver to meet him two blocks over. “I’ll go de-transform in the alley and walk to meet the driver.”

“Don’t do anything to give the game away,” Hawk Moth warned. “I don’t want you screwing this up. Not now on the eve of our victory.”

“I thought yesterday was the eve of your victory? And the day before that. And the day before that.”

“Don’t be insolent,” his father growled, taking a menacing step forward and raising his cane slightly.

“It’s better than being a fool. Don’t worry, father. I’ll find Ladybug, and then you can have the earrings.”

He leapt away, de-transforming, getting into the car, and letting the sentimonster in his hair apply subtle pressure to direct him, which he relayed to the gorilla. All the while, the question pulsed inside him. Suspecting his father intended to kill her, could he really turn her over to him? Cure or no cure, wish or no wish.

He was brought fully back to the present by familiar surroundings. They were slowing down in front of the Liberty. A chill ran through him. If Ladybug were here, then that meant she was almost certainly someone he knew. All this time, his professions of love, his betrayal… was it all directed at a person Adrien called a friend?


	4. Chapter 4

Marinette stepped onto the Liberty. 

As it happened, the Couffaine home was not empty, but was rather playing host to her classmates.

It was warm enough that, despite the cool breeze coming off the Seine, it was still comfortable to be sitting on deck. Alya, Nino, Kim, Alex, Nathaniel, Mark, Max, Rose, and Juleka were all arrayed in a semi-circle around-

“Hi, Marinette!” Lila exclaimed sweetly. “It’s so nice of you to come to my get well party!”

“Yeah, Lila was just released from the hospital,” Rose exclaimed. “She’s all better now.”

“Ladybug came to personally give me the cure this afternoon,” Lila went on, a vulpine grin on her face. “Isn’t that wonderful, Marinette? And Alya was kind enough to organize this little get together for me.”

“Yeah, wonderful.” There were no extra chairs, and no one moved to get her one.

Alya, for her part, looked embarrassed and defiant in equal measure. Her gaze seemed to say, I’m sorry for not inviting you, but you know you don’t like Lila anyway.

“Do you want to sit down?” Even Rose’s exuberance was tempered with something more wary.

Her enmity for all things Lila was no secret, and perhaps, if it’d been any other day, Marinette might have mustered some feelings of resentment. But really, Chat’s betrayal seemed to shift her perspective on what was, and what was not, important in her life.

“I thought you’d be at the recent akuma battle,” Marinette said lightly to her bestie.

Alya started. “Oh, right.” She shifted her gaze sideways at Lila. “Well, you know, after yesterday.”

Marinette didn’t in fact know, but she could guess. Either Lila had said something to throw shade on the superhero, or the fact that there was no cure cast made even the intrepid budding journalist hesitate.

“I actually came to see Luka, if that’s okay?” It was clear enough they wanted her there as much as she wanted to be there.

Juleka pointed to the stairs that led down.

“Thanks.”

Just as she reached the steps, someone behind her cleared their throat loudly. She turned to see Kim was pointedly looking between her and Lila. 

Oh right, she thought. “Uh, Lila, it’s good to see you’re doing better.”

“Thank you, Marinette. It’s because of all the love and support of my friends that I’m on the road to recovery.”

Marinette hurried away before Lila’s honeyed poison made her throw up.

The lower deck of the boat had a cool, damp quality – a God-send in the Paris summer heat. The sound of the water lapping against the boat and the gentle rocking also gave the place a sense of tranquility. Was it any wonder that Luka carried that same serenity with him?

The door to his room was slightly ajar. She nudged it open, the sound of Luka strumming on the guitar becoming clear.

“Hey.”

Luka’s fingers stilled, and his eyes lit up, the last resonant chord reverberating through the air. “Marinette.”

“I’m back,” she said.

“I see that. Come have a seat.”

He put his guitar to the side and opened his arms wide. Tentatively, but then with more confidence, she crawled onto his bed and tucked herself in his embrace.

“Everything okay?”

“Yes, no, maybe?”

“Mmm hmm,” he replied. “One of those days.”

“Yeah.”

“Is it something with your parents?”

“No!” she exclaimed. He was very warm, and she took a moment to luxuriate in the fact that she seemed to fit perfectly in his arms. 

“Did you come to see your friends, then? Juleka said the party was a spur of the moment thing.”

“No,” she said, forcing her thoughts to slow so she could focus on getting out the right words. “I didn’t know they were throwing a party. I thought our date was cut short, and after a bit, I decided I wanted to come and see you.”

She looked up to see how he was taking this. His smile, usually so bright, turned soft and gentle. “I’m happy you did that, Marinette.”

“It’s not weird that I just came over without even texting you?”

“Nothing you do is weird. And I think it’s sweet that you decided to surprise me. I was sad that our date got cut short too.”

Marinette’s heart did a little flutter, and she snuggled into him until it felt like there was no space left between them. She looked up into his ocean blue eyes, startled to realize just how close their faces were to one another. Tenderly, Luka closed the gap and placed a chaste kiss on her lips.

“I told you I’m here for you,” he murmured. “And I told you that I’m ready to listen to however much you want to share.”

“I know, she replied quietly.

“I did kind of think you would share at least something by now. I can see you’re hurting, Marinette. I can see you’re holding it all in.”

“I wish I could.” She pillowed her head against his chest. It was only now, after the day’s events had caught up to her, that she appreciated how tired she was from it all. Now that she could relax. Just one more step to finish this. And with any luck, she’d be able to snatch the miraculouses while her enemies were sleeping. Then she could vanish with the miracle box for good.

Wait, what? Vanish with the miracle box? Where had that thought come from?

But before she could examine the idea more fully, Luka began running his fingers through her hair. The sensation was magical, and lulled her worried, anxious thoughts of the miraculouses away, at least a little bit.

“Hmm,” he murmured thoughtfully.

Something in his tone raised Marinette’s antennae. “What is it?”

“A bug or something,” he said. “Not one I’ve ever seen before though.”

Before she had time to process this comment, her phone buzzed. She pulled it out absently, anticipating it was her parents. What she got though was a text from Fluff: Move now. CN approaching. Danger extreme.

For a moment, she stared at the text, disbelieving. That wasn’t possible. Her mind seemed to rush in two different directions simultaneously only to end at the same result. Bug in hair. Cn approaching. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

It was only then that she realized Luka was reading the text message over her shoulder. “Is that a prank or something?” he asked bemusedly.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. She’d been so caught up in the idea that she could be tracked to her home, that she didn’t even consider the ramifications of showing up at Luka’s. Now her carelessness had gone and brought a miraculous fight to his doorstep. One cataclysm, and everyone here would drown.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I never meant to put you in harm’s way.“

Marinette wriggled out of his grasp and leapt out of his bed. She darted through the doorway.

“Marinette! Wait!”

She dashed up the stairs to where the gathering was being held only to freeze in place.

“There room for one more?” a familiar voice asked at the entrance way.

Adrien was standing there, hand rubbing against the back of his neck in a well-worn gesture of nervousness.

“Of course, Adrien!” came the enthusiastic response from all the others.

“Dude, good to see you!” Nino cried.

His and Marinette’s gazes locked. Green eyes. Wind-swept blond hair. Green eyes.

“Uh, hi Marinette,” he said, and then added, “did you just get here?”

The question sounded innocent, but it nevertheless raised the hairs on the back of her neck.

“Yeah,” Lila called. “She just went down to see her boyfriend.”

As if on cue, Luka came up the stairwell and stood next to her. His gaze flicked uncertainly between her and Adrien. Adrien, for his part, seemed to zero in on her like a targeting reticule.

He’s looking at my earrings, she thought faintly. With a supreme force of will, she maintained eye contact, refusing to glance down at his silver ring. The unadorned silver ring he always, always wore. On the same finger as Chat Noir.

“Marinette, are you okay?” Luka’s voice was cautious. He tentatively held out a hand, but did not quite place it on her shoulder.

Marinette barely noticed. Her world had tilted on its axis. Reality had broken and was being reforged. Adrien was Chat Noir. Adrien Agreste. Chat Noir. Adrien. Chat. And he was here. For her earrings. She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. This couldn’t be happening. This wasn’t happening. Nope. Nada. Not happening at all.

Time must have snuck by her, because when she next looked up, it was into beautiful sea green eyes. Adrien was there in front of her. Just inches away. So close she could smell Adrien, the fragrance. 

“Marinette, are you okay?” He raised his hands. Up and up they went, like an elevator, like the motion one might make to keep from startling a skittish horse.

He’s going to steal my earrings, her mind screamed. He’s going to rip them right out of my ears. Move, move, move.

All sound ceased saved for the blood pounding through her veins. All motion. All awareness. All light and smell and taste, save for the blood that welled up where she bit her tongue.

She took a step forward and drove her knee into his crotch. The blow was so hard he was lifted off his feet and onto his toes. His eyes bulged, and his hands curled into fists. Marinette grabbed one arm, stepping to the side and twisting around his back. She kicked his legs out from under him in a single fluid motion, sending him landing hard on his knees with a crack. He screamed in pain. She twisted his arm tighter.

“You,” she growled. “It was you all this time.”

Nino had gotten to his feet and had taken a step forward, but Luka had stepped in his path, his gaze flitting everywhere and nowhere.

“Marinette! What the hell are you doing?” Alya shouted.

“Marinette!” Adrien gasped.

“How could you?” she repeated.

Was the world breaking, or was it just her mind? Or her heart?

She was dimly aware of Luka’s voice. His words, however, drew her back to the present. “Marinette, let him go. Please. Whatever this is about, let’s just talk about it.”

Let go? And give him another chance to hurt her? Not likely. Not unless she declawed him first. She leaned over and yanked the ring from his finger.

Someone exclaimed, “Did she just steal his ring?”

Marinette took a step back; slid the ring on her finger and watched Adrien watch her as she did so.

“Marinette,” he said, climbing shakily to his feet. “I’m sorry. Please, you have to listen-”

“Don’t come near me.” Her voice was full of controlled menace; nothing like the maelstrom screaming inside her head. “One step closer, and I’ll kill you.”

He threw up both his hands and took a step back in a gesture of submission. “I’m not here to fight.”

She glanced over at her classmates, who were proving to be a riveted audience. Nino and Luka, who seemed to have been near to blows, were frozen in place as their gazes volleyed back and forth between Marinette and Adrien. Part of her was struggling to juggle the need to flee, to fight, to get answers, to keep her secret, but part of her was also tired of it all, and recognized that, with each passing second, the secret she’d protected so ardently was now crumbling around her. The words she’d spoken and the actions she’d taken could not go unquestioned. Not unless Adrien was complicit in the deception. Unlikely. Which also meant that Hawk Moth would know soon. She seriously considered killing him right then and there, but it would not protect her secret. Only delay the inevitable. 

All her options vanished, leaving only one. She needed to strike first and with such devastating ferocity that her enemies were left incapable of threatening her or her loved ones. There was nothing else to it. Every moment she delayed was another moment Hawk Moth had to take her parents’ hostage. Her parents, who loved her. Her parents, who knew nothing of this dangerous double-life she led.

A small black cat floated up between them. “Pigtails,” he said, staring at her cautiously, no doubt sensing the apocalyptic fury bubbling beneath the surface.

“Plagg,” she acknowledged.

He nodded, still eyeing her as one might eye a cobra. “I know you’re pissed. But I’m asking. As much of a douche as my holder has been for the past few days, he’s still a good kid. Don’t hurt him.”

If it’d been anyone else, she would have scoffed. But the kwamis… they were the last ones in whom she had any faith left to place. At least when it came to miraculous matters.

Jerkily she nodded. ‘Okay, Plagg.” She turned to Adrien and continued, “But his father, and… Sancoeur.” She watched Adrien’s expression, and, seeing no surprise in his jade eyes, accepted that she had guessed right about the identities of Hawk Moth and Mayura. “All bets are off with those two.”

“I ain’t commenting on that,” Plagg replied. “If Adrien wants to grovel for mercy on their behalf, that’s his business. Those two are nuttier than a barrel of pecans. As far as I’m concerned, fate can have ‘em.”

“Marinette,” Adrien said again, and Marinette realized for the first time that he was struggling with this revelation as much as she was.

Suddenly, as if by magic, the fury subsided, and the fatigue from earlier rushed in to take its place. This was Adrien in front of her. Sweet, kind, sensitive Adrien. It’d been one thing for Chat Noir, a veritable stranger under the mask, to turn on her. She didn’t know him. Didn’t understand his personality. Didn’t understand the personal issues that haunted him. But Adrien was different. She knew him. She understood. And the empathy that had been absent from before flood her system now, up-ending her emotions into a messy, boiling soup.

She began to cry. “You broke my ribs,” she said dully. “You let them smash my head into the ground until my skull caved in. Why would you do that to me? How could you let them do that? You, of all people.”

But Adrien gave her no answers. Not that she needed them from him. Her mind was already overclocking, racing to put pieces together. “Hawk Moth must have promised you something of inestimable value,” she murmured.

“My mother,” he replied. Tears fell down his eyes. “That’s what it was all about. She’s still alive, locked in a magical coma from having used the damaged peacock miraculous.”

“Why didn’t you come to me?” she asked. “Why didn’t you at least talk to me, chaton? It was you and me against the world, remember?”

“Would you have listened?” he challenged.

Would she have? She knew what he was asking, even if he couldn’t fully articulate it. Would she have been willing to combine their two miraculouses to save his mother? She didn’t know. But she knew who did.

“Tikki, come out.” She was amazed at how steady her voice became when there was real miraculous business to attend to.

Tikki floated up next to Plagg, glancing warily between them. “Yes, Marinette?”

“Can we save Adrien’s mother?”

“I can cast the cure,” Tikki said. “Same as I did for you, Marinette. How well it would work is another question. The effects become more unpredictable the more severe the damage.”

“What if we combine the miraculouses?” she pressed, her gaze never leaving Adrien.

“If I cannot do it myself-“ Tikki looked at Plagg, “- then yes, by combining the two miraculouses, it can be done. However, there will be a price. The power to achieve the effect would have to be drawn not only from me but from Plagg as well. I can inject creation into the world. But if Plagg is required, then, to the extent he is required, destruction would be injected into the world as well.”

“I told you this already, kid,” Plagg muttered. “Saving your mom’s going to cost someone else their life. That’s at a minimum. And no, you don’t get to choose who it is. In all likelihood though, it’d be someone else you love.” Plagg glanced meaningfully at Marinette.

“No,” Adrien said. “No, it can’t be. That’s ridiculous. What use is a wish that could do something like that? What’s the point giving and taking like that?”

“Our powers are not your personal play toy,” Longg said, floating up to join the other two kwami. Others as well began to rise. “We are manifestations of the fabric of reality itself.”

Trixx floated forward to speak. “It was you humans who contacted us, young holder. The first of your kind to communicate with us was wise and humble in equal measure. We valued the exchange greatly. Benefit was gained on both sides between kwami and human. We chose to be bound through the jewels to continue the exchange. To nurture humanity and to grow with you. We were not meant to be subjugated or to be abused, or to be mishandled as you have done.”

Wayzz joined the others. “the compact from so long ago was to agree to be bound to human will, but, in exchange, the order of the guardians was to protect us in return. To ensure that we would never fall into the wrong hands. This system has worked for thousands of years. Until now.”

“I’m sorry,” Adrien said. “I never meant for any of this.”

“You were planning to do more than just save your mother, weren’t you?” Marinette said, realizing the truth as she spoke it, his words from earlier that evening resurfacing in her mind. “You were planning on undoing everything your father’s done. No Hawk Moth. No Ladybug. No Chat Noir.”

“No betrayal,” he said quietly.

“That’s how you justified it to yourself.”

Troubled whispers broke out amongst the kwami.

“I cannot do that on my own,” Tikki said. “The repercussions to the fabric of reality would be incalculable.”

“You have your answer then,” Marinette replied, her voice soft and even. “I would not have let you. Adrien, this isn’t the way to grieve. I’m sorry for what happened to your mother, but what Hawk Moth has done. What you have done….”

He nodded. Tears continued to spill down his face. “I’m sorry, Marinette. I’m so sorry.”

She looked out over the dark waters of the Seine, and the lights that twinkled on the other side of the river. How was it possible that the world continued to carry on when it felt like everything around her was shattering?

“My secret identity is gone,” Marinette continued. “You know that means that I have no choice now. I have to go finish this. I can’t risk them hurting my family.”

He swallowed. “I won’t try and stop you.”

Privately, she thought it would have been foolish of him to make the attempt, but the hitch in his voice, the collapsed posture – it all radiated sincerity, and so she took the statement as it was intended.

She turned to go, and paused as she came face to face with the stunned expressions of her classmates.

“You’re Ladybug,” Lila said. The wondering tone in her voice quickly morphed into something calculating. “You did this to me. You left me injured and broken.”

Marinette arched an eyebrow, affecting an air of detached curiosity. “I thought I came by the hospital today to personally administer the cure. Besides, I’m not the one that zapped you.”

Longg floated forward. “That was all me. You were a clear and present threat to the guardian, and I was duty bound to take all steps necessary to see her to safety.”

Lila took in the words quickly, and Marinette could practically see her shifting gears. “You’re duty bound to do what she says,” Lila countered. “This is no one’s fault but Marinette’s.”

Longg was about to speak, but Marinette raised a hand to silence him. “I have heard Tikki speak of kwami justice. It reminds me a lot of that old saying… an eye for an eye. Would you care to do the honours, Trixx?”

“With pleasure,” said the fox kwami. He floated forward, his gaze fixing on the target of his wrath.

“Trixx!” Alya exclaimed, the sight of him floating close breaking her from her stupor.

“Hello, Mistress,” Trixx said, nodding in respect to his former holder. “It is a pleasure to see you are well.”

“What are you going to do to me?” Lila demanded. She glanced between the approaching kwami and the exit, as if calculating whether she could escape.

“I am the kwami of illusion,” Trixx intoned. “All forms of trickery fall within my domain, young trickster. I have the power to pierce all veils of deception. Look into my eyes.”

“What – no – you can’t. I’m innocent-“

Lila was bathed in an orange glow. When it faded, Trixx studied her a moment longer before nodding, satisfied. “For the crime of aiding Hawk Moth, you will never have the power to weave illusions in any form ever again.”

“You can’t do that,” Lila cried. She glanced among the others. “You can’t punish me like that! I’m a victim here!”

Marinette watched, fascinated, as whatever spell of mischief Lila had been able to weave seemed to fall away, the veil over her classmates dissipating to leave Lila’s essence exposed. There was nothing tangible that she could point to. No sign over Lila’s head proclaiming she was a liar. It simply seemed, natural and obvious.

“Thank you, Trixx,” Marinette murmured. “And remind me never to piss any of you off.”

“My pleasure, guardian. By the way, on a completely unrelated note, you wouldn’t happen to have any of those pink macarons lying around, would you?”

She opened her large purse and said, “Bon appetit.”

“The hour grows late.” Tikki floated up next to her.

“You’re right.” With affection, and hopefully, for the final time that evening, she said, “Spots on.”

Pink light washed over her. There was another series of gasps of astonishment as the light faded to reveal Ladybug.

“Plagg,” she called out.

“Yeah, wait, what? Oh no you don’t, I’m hungry-“

She intertwined her fingers. “Tikki, Plagg, unify!”

She swayed as the two greatest miraculouses conjoined.

“Ladybug,” Adrien cried, shocked. “Please-“

But she didn’t stay to listen, instead yoyoing off the Liberty and in the direction of the Agreste mansion.

#

“Are we not returning to the manor?” Mayura asked, puzzled.

“In a moment,” Hawk Moth replied, settling down on the roof of a nearby building. “We’re going to wait for Chat Noir’s signal first. Something about our encounter with Ladybug rubs me the wrong way.” At her questioning glance, he continued slowly as he put his thoughts in order. “Ladybug had defeated the Bourgeois girl with embarrassing ease, and in the process, she forced Chat Noir to reveal himself. She then confronted him on the street. They spoke briefly, before she made a token attack before leaving.”

“Yes.” Mayura, bless her, was nearly as sharp as he was. “From her perspective, this was her best chance at defeating Chat Noir. So why didn’t she even attempt to take his miraculous?”

“The way I see it,” Hawk Moth continued, “there are two options. Either she believed there was a trap of some kind and decided to back off, or she believed Chat Noir was no longer a threat to her.”

“Do you think he has betrayed us?”

“Possibly,” Hawk Moth said, tamping down on the instinctive frustration that the very idea engendered. “He already betrayed Ladybug, so it is not as though his loyalties are immutable. Perhaps she said something to him during their brief conversation to encourage him to consider changing sides once more.”

“He has been reluctant,” she said carefully. “Defiant, even. Perhaps he no longer believes we can win.”

Hawk Moth grimaced. It wasn’t an unreasonable conclusion for him to come to. As much as it pricked at his pride, his track record was hardly stellar. 

“The trouble with divided loyalties,” Hawk Moth continued, “is that Chat Noir may not betray us in an overt manner. After the past two days, I have my doubts that he is truly fully committed to defeating Ladybug.”

“I watched the footage of both battles,” Mayura said. “It did appear that he took both fights seriously.”

“During the first encounter, he lifted his staff from Ladybug’s abdomen when she de-transformed,” Hawk Moth said. “If he’d kept the pressure on her, she would not have had the opportunity to create an illusion and escape. Moreover, he did not make a concerted effort to pursue her. He just gave up. I have looked at his face at length in that moment when she vanished. It was not the face of someone angry that his prey had escaped. It was the look of someone who was depressed that they had to keep fighting.”

“That is why we tried to minimize his role in her take-down,” Mayura reminded him. “We knew we could not push him too hard lest we risk alienating him.”

“The foolish boy still loves her.”

“If you had concerns regarding his…,” Mayura searched for the right word, “… efficacy, then why send him after her today?”

That was the question, wasn’t it? It would’ve been nothing for him to join his son in the limousine. It wasn’t as though he would have had to have stepped outside. Just his presence would have been sufficient to ensure Adrien complied. But with him out there alone, unsupervised – there was no telling what he might do if forced into a confrontation.

“I needed to know,” he said finally, before falling into a contemplative silence.

Before she could ask for further clarification, there was a rumble that reverberated through the ground. A flash in the distance lit up the night sky.

“What – what was that?” Mayura asked, frowning as she mentally triangulated the location.

“Agreste Manor,” Hawk Moth said quietly as realization sank in.

There came a roar of rage. It made the very air shake with its fury. “Hawk Moth! Come and fight me, you coward!”

Hawk Moth’s first instinct was to retreat. He had seldom put himself on the front line, doing so only when there was a clear advantage for him. But here, it was his home being attacked, Ladybug the aggressor, with no support of his own save for Mayura. Even then, the best tactic would have been to retreat. But his home… And his wife….

“Emilie.” A low growl emanated from deep within. The mere possibility that she was being endangered was like a match to gasoline.

Hawk Moth bounded forward, landing on the outer wall of his estate in three leaps. The entire mansion was still crumbling. He recognized the effects of a cataclysm well enough. Mayura landed beside him, but he paid her no attention. His wife was in danger. His gaze fixed on a dark silhouette remaining on one of the still intact walls.

“Ladybug!” he screamed out into the twilight. “You’ll pay for this!”

She turned to face him fully.

“I’LL KILL YOU!” They screamed in unison before leaping into combat, cane joining with staff in a violent shockwave of magical power.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: This chapter contains thoughts of suicide.

“-be careful-“ Adrien said, taking a step forward, hand outstretched, as if he could somehow hold back the force of nature that was his partner.

No, not partner, he thought sadly. Former partner.

The others were still shellshocked by the entire affair, but he had no time for that. If he knew Ladybug, she’d be going straight for the Agreste mansion. Straight for his father. She would think she had no choice but to force the confrontation before Hawk Moth could ensnare her parents. Even if she’d stayed to listen to him, even if he’d convinced her of his sincerity, she likely still would’ve gone straight in. She wasn’t the type to take a chance with her identity.

But she doesn’t know about the mansion’s security, he thought. If she tries walking in there, she’ll be ambushed.

“Adrien?” Nino asked cautiously, approaching.

“I have to go,” he mumbled, putting a hand on Nino’s shoulder and gently pushing past him.

His friend looked lost, and he dearly wished he could talk him through the huge revelations that’d just been dropped, but there was just no time. He ran off the boat and down the street to where his driver was parked.

“Get us back to the house, ASAP,” he said, slamming the car door shut.

The gorilla revved the engine, and they were off like a shot. 

Ten minutes, he thought. Just ten minutes, and I’ll be there.

There was a boom in the distance. A tremor rolled through the car. He swallowed. It’d already begun.

Just ten minutes.

#

The cane shattered the floor tiles, but Ladybug was already ten feet away, her razor-yoyo whipping toward Mayura.

“Stay still, you little insect!” Hawk Moth shouted furiously. He needed to end this quickly. The mansion was in ruins. No doubt the entire electrical system had been destroyed, and there was no telling if it had affected the life support equipment that kept Emilie alive. She could be dying this instant.

Mayura sidestepped the projectile and used her fan to sever the cord, only for the cord to reform into a staff and stab into her gut, sending her flying backward into a pile of jagged rubble.

Hawk Moth was suddenly in front of her, cane stabbing at her. The staff retracted in an instant, deflecting the blow and using the momentum to let Ladybug pivot back to Mayura.

Hawk Moth tried to intercept, but she kicked off the tip of his cane in a feat of impossible acrobatics. Mayura managed to get to her feet and raise her fan in defence. By the time he realized that Ladybug was an illusion, it was too late.

“Mayura, no!” he shouted. Ladybug passed through the fan without resistance, turning into orange smoke.

Hawk Moth whipped his cane around in an attempt to ward off an invisible attacker, but Mayura’s cry of pain froze him in mid-swing. The yoyo was wrapped tight around her neck. Ladybug propelled her head first into a slab of concrete so hard her skull sank six inches into the surface. Hawk Moth lunged forward, but Ladybug danced backward, dragging Mayura along, flicking her yoyo this way and that, smashing Mayura into block of rubble after block of rubble.

“Why so upset, Hawk Moth?” Ladybug taunted. “You can always fix her later… once you have my earrings!”

Hawk Moth caught up to Mayura, and Ladybug released her hold, the yoyo zipping back.

Hawk Moth knelt to check on his assistant. Her nose was broken, and teeth were missing. Her skull looked to be caved in on one side. He leapt back as the yoyo came zipping at him again.

Ladybug pressed her advantage. With the sheer array of magical powers at her disposal, he was driven further and further back. Away from Mayura, the one person who’d been making this fight at least somewhat equal.

He ducked another blow only to see Mayura’s body flipped over. A hand reached down and ripped the broach from her collar.

“NO!” he shouted, rushing forward. Miraculously, his cane struck Ladybug, sending her flying past the wreckage and through the outer wall. 

He charged after her. This is my chance, he thought. If he could just keep the pressure on, then he could claim victory from the jaws of defeat.

#

The gorilla glanced questioningly at Adrien as he pulled up to the front gate. Through the bars, it was clear that the house was no more. More than half the walls had collapsed, with piles of debris and ash splashed liberally about. Flashes of movement caught his eye, along with ground shaking collisions as the gladiatorial death match continued.

Adrien got out of the car, the gorilla following suit.

‘You should go,” Adrien said. “It’s too dangerous here.”

The gorilla put a supportive hand on his shoulder, as if to reassure him that he’d still be here afterward to drive him away from this hellhole.

Twenty feet away, the stone wall that served to fence in the property exploded outward, a red and black figure tumbling through the flying chips of rock.

“Ladybug,” he cried, dashing after her. He barely caught sight of the figure following through the dust and debris – barely caught the glimmer of light off the blade that extruded from the end of his cane as it bore through his abdomen like a harpoon.

The world around him went still. It seemed to take forever for his mind to catch up to what exactly had happened. Ladybug was crouched in front of him, looking up startled at him, her yoyo at the ready to deflect Hawk Moth’s incoming attack – the incoming attack that he had stupidly ran in front of.

“Adrien?”

It was suddenly a struggle just to open his mouth. The pain and shock came over him like a great wave. “My Lady.”

Gently, he sank to the ground, the cane descending, minimizing the damage to his internal organs. He slid off the ultra-sharp, frictionless blade, right into his lady’s arms. She caught him, her yoyo suddenly abandoned in favour of holding him. She shifted him so that he lay cradled in her lap, her arms still hugging him tightly.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I… I am so, so sorry.”

“Hush.” Her gaze roved over his body. She frowned at the wound before glancing at the cane. Adrien followed her gaze to Hawk Moth, who stood, weapon still at the ready, but frozen save for the drip-drip of blood off the steel.

The pain in his stomach grew and grew, eclipsing anything else he’d ever experienced in terms of raw physical agony.

“What were you thinking, leaping into the middle of a fight?” she asked.

“My lady was in danger,” he said, grimacing. One hand reflexively clutched at his stomach, but that only seemed to make the pain worse. “Besides, tis but a scratch.”

She snorted, but he could tell from the slight shaking that carried through her and into him that she was struggling to keep her composure.

“I’ve made so many wrong decisions lately,” he went on, holding the pain back by the blue of her eyes, “I just wanted to do one thing that I knew was right.”

“Getting yourself stabbed in the stomach?” she asked incredulously.

He reached his other hand up and wiped a tear away from her cheek. “Protecting you. At least one more time.”

“Don’t say that,” she whispered. “You can’t just keep switching sides. You can’t keep doing and saying crazy things, and tearing me up like this.”

“Enough of this repugnant teenage melodrama,” growled Hawk Moth. “Put my son down, Ladybug, and let’s finish this.”

“Seriously?” she said, shouting through her sniffles. “You want to keep fighting after you impaled your own son?”

“He’ll live,” said Hawk Moth. “Even if he dies, he’ll live. You’ll either win and use the cure, or I’ll win and use the cure. Either way, his wound means nothing.”

“You’re insane,” Ladybug whispered. “I never truly believed it until now. You’re flakier than a phyllo pastry.”

“Father-“ Adrien began, but there was a moment of pain so intense that his world contracted in on itself. When sense finally returned, it was to the thunderclap of battle. For a moment, he lay there, helpless and wincing with every shockwave that rippled through the broken ground. But then his hand alighted on something strange. He lifted the exotic, jewelled object to his face to see what it was. A broach.

Huh, he thought. It kind of looks like a miraculous.

#

Defending, dodging, and deflecting, Ladybug moved like lightning, remaining a step ahead of Hawk Moth; especially out here in the open where there was nowhere to be cornered. Hawk Moth seemed slightly faster and more agile, but her yoyo gave her unparalleled mobility. And that didn’t account for the multitude of other powers that she had at her disposal.

“Get back here!” Hawk Moth screamed yet again.

“Have you ever thought of maybe taking anger management classes?” she called while perched atop a tree branch. “It might help you get over this pathological need to akumatize people.”

“Aarghh!” He leapt after her, but she was already in motion, transiting fifty feet to end up balancing lightly on a street lamp.

Defeating him would have been easy. It should have been. She had no excuse save one. This was Adrien’s father. And the more she saw him in that light, the more her mind filled in the lines between the dots that made up Adrien’s life, the more the feeling of pity grew inside her. Monsieur Agreste had been willing to ignore his own son’s mortal injury. He’d been willing to incinerate everything in his life right down to the bedrock if it meant continuing to live in his fantasy world. He was like an addict. 

The more time that past, the more he raged futilely at her, the more she envisioned Adrien’s life inside those walls. The more she imagined how this man’s sickness had driven him to break Adrien’s psyche down piece by piece, emotionally manipulating him into the kind of person that would be desperate to fight crime if it meant feeling a bit of freedom. And conversely, to efface his own moral center for the fleeting chance at affection.

In a way, it put all of Adrien’s attempts at flirting, his near constant need to leap into danger, to crave her affection at every turn into perspective. And so, even as she dodged, she wept for the two most important boys in her life, neither of whom she ever really knew.

#

That sick bitch.

She was toying with him. Taunting him. Laughing at him as she danced backward, staying forever out of reach, knowing all the while that his family was behind them, dead or dying. He wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of quitting. Wouldn’t give her even an inch so long as there was a chance he would rip those earrings from her lifeless corpse.

“You realize that I’ve got both the ladybug and cat miraculouses, don’t you, Hawk Moth? That I’m wearing them both. You know what that means, don’t you? I could wish you away whenever I want.”

Another swing of his cane, another zip of her yoyo. Grimly, he pressed on.

“I mean, don’t you think it’s a little weird?” She leapt backward onto the roof of an SUV. “Your allies are all destroyed. You’re outmatched on every front. Your entire life, your power - everything you’ve worked to build is collapsing around you, and the only hope you might have of salvaging any of it is throwing yourself at my feet to beg for mercy… and yet you’re still just flailing like a toddler throwing a tantrum.”

This is her plan, Hawk Moth raged. She’s going to lecture me to death.

He smashed the SUV, flipping it over onto its side. Of course she was already gone.

He debated running into one of the buildings and taking a hostage. Deep down, he didn’t think it would work. Ladybug had grown past the stage where she’d give in just for that, but he couldn’t think of anything else that could change the tide of battle. Not unless he could make an akuma, but he was certain she’d be watching for that. Making an akuma took precious seconds wherein he would be vulnerable. Maybe if he got inside one of the buildings and took a hostage, he could have the time to make an akuma, and of course the hostage themselves would be the perfect target for the akuma. Yes, that could work.

But before he could position himself to slip into a nearby apartment building to lose her, there was a flutter of wings.

Mayura, thank God.

But then a boot struck him in the chest, propelling him onto his back. His cane came up instinctively, but suddenly, it vanished, knocked from his hand and clattering to one side as a familiar fan batted it away.

“What-?” Hawk Moth cried.

He stared dumbly at the peacock standing before him.

“It’s over, father.”

“Adrien,” he whispered, his mind already whirling with new possibilities. With his son, and an akuma, he would surely get those earrings, and then he would win. Finally. He held out a hand. “Help me up, boy.”

“No,” Adrien said, voice wavering at first but then growing firm. “It’s over. We’ve lost. We’re going to surrender our miraculouses to Ladybug, and then we’re going to accept whatever punishment-“

“TRAITOR!” He leapt to his feet, hands curling and uncurling compulsively with impotent fury. 

He was yanked off his feet, as the yoyo cord looped again and again around his arms, torso and legs, mummifying him. Suddenly immobile, he helplessly watched as Adrien leaned in and ripped the miraculous from his lapel.

Purple light washed over him, leaving behind only Gabriel Agreste, all vestiges of magical power dissipating like smoke. His son stepped back, and the yoyo unwound and retracted itself, leaving him utterly alone.

“No,” he whispered, staring at nothing. All the power was gone. This was it. He had failed completely and utterly. Yet he couldn’t quite grasp the idea. His mind seemed to seize up at the thought. He, Gabriel Agreste, had failed. The very idea was an anathema. Others failed. Not him. Never him.

“Miraculous ladybug!”

#

After the party, Lila returned home and locked herself away in her bedroom. She didn’t know what that little orange freak did to her exactly, but she had seen the expressions on the others. Had understood intimately that they now distrusted her instinctively. Maybe that was all the creature had done. Trixx – was that its name? Who cared. It wasn’t like she was going to get to see it again. Or wanted to. Not unless she could control it.

She spent a moment fantasizing about having all those freaks under her control. There had to be a way. Hawk Moth must’ve gotten his hands on one of them, so it wasn’t like it was impossible. Not that it worked for him in the end. Because of her. Marinette Dupain-Cheng. That witch. Just the thought of her made raw hatred well up inside. Tears surged down her cheeks. She wiped them furiously away.

“I’ll get you back,” she whispered into the still air. 

The silence mocked her.

Her gaze shifted, and then faltered. There was an envelope tucked partially under her duvet. That hadn’t been there a minute ago. She reached a hand out for it and stopped as the implications formulated themselves one by one in her mind. Someone had been in her room. Just now. Could still be there. Someone she couldn’t see or hear or even sense. Her gaze flicked back and forth. Computer. Desk, open closet. There were few hidden spaces in her room. Nothing big enough for a person. Except under her bed. Fuck.

She stared down at her bed as if she would suddenly sprout the ability to see through it to the dark space beneath. Something was down there, and it had oozed through the material of the bed to plant that envelope there. She was sure of it. But was it still there?

Reluctantly, she reached over, and, with quick and nimble fingers, she snatched the envelope and held it to her chest. Another quick glance around the room. No further motion. She carefully opened the envelope, noting the extravagant calligraphy used to write out her name on the front in burnished gold letters. Burnished gold letters that looked almost orange.

We’re watching you.

Just those three words. And, at the bottom, a signature: Trixx

Lila began to shake. What emotion she was feeling, she did not know, only that, whatever it was, it was powerful and enduring, staying with her for days to come. And whenever she thought of Marinette, that same paralyzing feeling that set her to violent trembling overtook her.

Even though no one ever explicitly told her not to disclose Ladybug’s identity. Even though she had every opportunity to do so. Even though she wanted to do so if for nothing else then to hurt the girl that had hurt her. Despite all that, she never did.

#

“I’m going to miss you,” Marinette confessed. She was sitting on her bed, the kwamis arrayed comfortably around her, the miracle box nestled on her pillow.

“It’s not a good-bye, Marinette,” said Pollen. “Think of it as a see you at some indefinite point in the future.”

“It feels like a good-bye.”

The kwamis shuffled forward and gave her a hug.

“I wish we could stay out a little longer too,” said Mullo. “It’s rare for us to get to stretch our legs and talk to you humans.”

“But we can’t,” admonished Wayzz. “The young guardian needs to let the magic ebb away from her body. There’s no telling what the repercussions to her health in the long-term would be.”

Murmurs of acknowledgement broke out among the kwamis.

“When will I know…?” she began uncertainly.

Tikki floated up and put one tiny hand on her cheek. “You’ll know, Marinette.”

“Are you… leaving too, Tikki?” Marinette didn’t think she could hold back the tears if it were true.

“No,” said Tikki. “I am here with you, always.”

Marinette closed her eyes and leaned into her kwami’s touch. “Thank you.”

“Anytime, Marinette.”

“Besides,” added Wayzz, “even though there have been no dangers or attempts at retribution or theft in the last three days doesn’t mean there won’t be in the future. It is only a matter of time before someone discloses your existence as Ladybug and as the guardian of the miraculous.”

Marinette nodded. “Yeah, I suppose.” She hesitated before bringing up a topic that she had secretly feared. “Will I have to relinquish my role as the guardian?”

Wayzz’s gaze softened. “No, young guardian. We have discussed the situation, and we will monitor what happens. If we feel the danger is too great, then we may ask it of you.”

“And my memory?” She was amazed at how she managed to ask with a steady voice.

Wayzz looked away. “There is no getting around that, if it comes to it.”

“Guardianship is a terrible burden,” Tikki said. “I wish Master Fu had never placed it on your shoulders.”

Marinette gave her a watery smile. “There wasn’t much in the way of options. Besides, I’m… making my peace with it.”

“I’m so proud of you, Marinette.”

“Ahem,” Nooroo said, carefully. “If I may make a request?”

The others turned to him. He was looking much better after having been fed a full diet of food over the past three days.

“I’d like to spend some time with my former master’s son.”

“Nooroo!” exclaimed Tikki, startled. “That’s-“

“Me too,” added Duusu quickly.

Marinette glanced between the two kwamis, suddenly anxious. Tikki was busy interrogating them, but Marinette didn’t really need to hear it. She already knew that the kwamis had big hearts. Even that cheese-obsessed cat. Adrien had no one now, and his father’s fortune was being destroyed. There were rumours of a ten billion dollar class action lawsuit being commenced against the Agreste estate. And that wasn’t taking into consideration criminal sanctions that could be levied against the company. The company’s stock prices had dropped to mere pennies. Adrien himself was under house arrest. Only Ladybug’s testimony had kept him from being thrown in jail. But she had extended no such defence to the perpetrators of the year long campaign of terror, and so Gabriel and Nathalie had been thrown in jail, never to see the light of day again.

“Of course,” Marinette cut into the argument. “If that’s what you want. But you do understand that neither of you should feel remotely obligated to.”

“No obligation,” insisted Nooroo. “And if I may be so bold, guardian, I think you should open your arms to Adrien once more.” Seeing the horrified expression on her face, he added quickly, “You do not know what his father did to him all these long years.”

“I’d like to see the dummy too,” added Plagg in a voice that sounded only vaguely interested.

“You want me to give him three miraculouses?” Marinette couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“Not to transform with,” Nooroo pressed. “Just so that we can talk to him. There is much damage that needs to be undone, and there is no one else who can do it.”

The kwamis all turned their gaze to Marinette, who suddenly felt uncomfortable. Part of her wanted to scream, Hell, no! But another part – the enduring fire of compassion that burned in her heart still dominated.

Jerkily, she nodded her head. “Okay. If that’s what you want. But there will be ground rules. He will only be allowed to have one miraculous at a time. We can swap on a regular schedule.”

They quickly came to an agreement, and it wasn’t long before she was standing outside the mansion. The heat did nothing to fend off the chill that swelled inside her. She hugged herself tightly before marching forward.

#

Adrien stared blankly up at the ceiling. He’d been like this for days, just catatonically staring at nothing. He’d never really understood mental health before; had privately been influenced by his father’s disdain for the very idea of it. But now he was coming to face the very stark reality that he was broken. He could barely muster the energy to bathe and feed himself. Every time his mind fixed on a thought, inevitably, a hundred other thoughts latched on, each more painful than the last, until he felt like he was spiraling down into an abyss. To the same low point. A point where he hated himself. A point where he fantasized about killing himself. And every time he ran through the fantasy in his head, it grew more and more real.

Better not to think at all.

Vaguely, he thought he heard footsteps outside his bedroom. Impossible, since no one else was in the mansion. Except maybe it was an intruder. An angry victim now come to seek revenge. Even when the door opened, and the intruder entered his room, even then he did not move. He only prayed whoever it was would make it quick. Even that thought felt cowardly. He deserved to suffer before he died.

His assailant stopped at the foot of his bed.

Do it, he thought, closing his eyes. Tears leaked out of the corners. It could all be over soon. In his mind’s eye, he pictured Monsieur Ramier lifting a gun, aiming, finger tightening on the trigger.

“Adrien?”

That voice. He shuddered. It couldn’t be. Not her. God, he would’ve preferred death.

“Adrien, it’s me.”

The tears pumped harder from his tightly shut eyelids. He couldn’t control the trembling. The next thing he knew, the bed was shifting slightly as she sat down next to him. A cool hand touched his cheek and forehead.

He let out a little whimper and tried to turn away. Maybe if he let her see how pathetic he was, she would leave him here to die. The death fantasy began to play in his head, more vivid than ever before.

#

Marinette sat on the edge of Adrien’s bed for several minutes, just watching him. Nooroo fluttered anxiously, his gaze more sorrowful than anything she’d ever seen from the expressive kwami before.

“I feel his emotions,” Marinette whispered. “It’s so awful, Nooroo.”

“Part of my power,” he explained quietly. “If I may use a metaphor – for most people, the experience of other’s emotions would feel like a background hum. Strong emotions might feel like a musical chord.” A tear slid down the tiny God’s cheek. “Adrien is a symphony.”

Hesitantly, Marinette reached out a hand and lightly touched his shoulder. “Adrien,” she tried again. The muscles under her fingers bunched up with tension. “Please look at me.”

“I can’t,” came his whispery voice.

Nooroo fluttered over and alighted on his cheek. He bent down and gave Adrien a gentle kiss. “My sweet child,” Nooroo crooned. “I wish I could take your pain away.” 

He turned and gave her an imploring look. Something uncomfortable prickled inside. He’d hurt her. Broken her ribs. Even now, seeing him, made her want to flinch. To run away and hide. Feelings surged inside her, equal parts anger, and indignation and sorrow. They couldn’t expect her to comfort him. It was too much. Too much too soon.

But Nooroo did not turn his gaze away. He continued to stare at her with a gaze that was neither accusing nor judging, but which made her squirm nevertheless. The kwamis were here for you when you needed it, his gaze seemed to say. Not all battles are won with sword and staff. Some with love and compassion.

Marinette opened her mouth to speak. She could certainly utter a few platitudes. They were just words. She didn’t have to mean them. But the words seemed to stick in her throat. Adrien was clearly in no shape to listen anyway. 

The longer she stared at him, the greater a veil seemed to flake away from her eyes, as if the normal filters that kept people insulated from one another were peeling away. For a moment, she saw Adrien as Nooroo did. As a boy who had been forced to lock himself in his own mind just to protect whatever semblance of self he could cobble together. A boy who lived in a world that demanded and criticized in equal measure. A boy who mistook abuse for love; cruelty for concern.

The final chains of reluctance fell away. Marinette crawled into bed with Adrien, tucking herself around him like a cocoon, wrapping her arms around him and holding him.

“Shhh,” she began, “It’s okay. It’s okay.”

After a minute wherein he remained coiled like a spring, he finally slowly began to relax. Marinette began to sing quietly one of the songs her mother used to sing to her when she was a child.

Thirty minutes later, he was fast asleep. Carefully, she extricated herself from him, gently prying his fingers from hers.

Nooroo looked relieved.

“Kwamis are naturally empathetic beings,” he said, alighting on her shoulder as she slipped out of his room. “It is hard for us to understand how humans can find so many ways to hurt one another.”

“Hmm.”

“Perhaps you could simply leave me here with him,” Nooroo said delicately.

She grimaced. Adrien was in worse shape than she’d expected. “I’m not leaving a miraculous here.”

Nooroo nodded sadly in understanding, but made no further comment.

“Perhaps I could wear the miraculous,” she said slowly. “That way you could still spend time with him.”

“You would do that?” he asked.

“I’m not giving up Tikki.” She shrugged helplessly. “I don’t think I could do that. Not with everything that’s happened. But if she thinks it’s okay, that continuing to wear two miraculouses won’t be permanently detrimental, then I’ll do it. At least for a little while.”

“Thank you, Grand Guardian.”

#

Marinette set the dinner table with a growing sense of anxiety. It was time, she decided, to come clean about the miraculous to her parents. 

Now that Hawk Moth was gone, there was little excuse. And with her identity compromised, they needed to know the danger.

They must have sensed her disquiet, because dinner past in near silence, conversation being exchanged through concerned glances.

“Maman, Papa,” Marinette began, putting her fork and knife down. Immediately she wanted to pick them up and begin fiddling with it as their gazes zeroed in on her like laser pointers. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Of course, sweetheart,” her mother said kindly. “You can tell us anything.”

For a moment, Marinette said nothing. The silence condensed into something that made it hard to breathe. Could she really do this? She barely registered her mother placing a small hand over her bicep and squeezing gently in support.

“Does this have to do with Adrien”” her mother asked. “We know he was your friend.”

“He is my friend,” she replied automatically, but then winced. Was he? Did she feel that way about him? Did he feel that way about her? Only a few knew for certain he was Chat Noir. Her classmates hadn’t divulged that information, but it wasn’t hard to guess. The media had already taken note of his silver ring as part of the speculation over him being Chat Noir. There were so many pictures of him that it had not been difficult to figure out that he only started wearing it around the time that Chat Noir showed up, and that he stopped wearing it after Hawk Moth was defeated.

Come on, Ladybug, she told herself. You can do this.

“Maman, Papa,” she tried again, looking them each in the eye. They had loved her and trusted her, and she had held this huge secret from them for more than a year. They knew what had happened to Ladybug. They knew what she had done, and what had been done to her. Her hands trembled. Her eyes shone with tears. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Whatever it is, we’re here to listen and support you,” said her father.

“Don’t say that,” she said, sniffling. “You don’t even know what it is. For all you know, I could be pregnant.”

“We would still love you and support you.”

“I could be an axe murderer.”

“We would still love you and support you,” her father said, and then, after a moment, added, “and we’d visit you while you’re in prison.”

Marinette looked away and brushed the tears from her eyes. Do it, she thought. Just rip the band-aid off.

Clenching her fingers together under the table, she finally said, “I am Ladybug.”

Time seemed to have stopped. Neither of her parents moved. Then it rebooted, and they were exchanging essays between them through glances alone.

“Sweetheart,” her mother began slowly. “You’re – how long?”

“Since the beginning,” she confessed. “The entire school year. It’s always been me. It’s only ever been me.”

“And that was you on tv with Chat Noir?” her father asked. There was clear dread in his voice. “When he attacked you?”

She nodded. And now the tears did fall. The admission brought it all flooding back.

Her mother and father were there suddenly, kneeling beside her on either side, arms encircling her to hold her as she sagged from the weight of the truths that had burdened her all this time.

She wasn’t quite sure what they had said to her. Only that their love and warmth soothed away the pain that twisted up her insides. At least for now.

“There’s more,” she went on, collecting herself. “You’d better sit for this.”

Once they took their seats, she began to explain.

#

Marinette stopped at the entrance to Mme. Bustier’s classroom. The teacher was nowhere to be seen. There was just her classmates. The ones that’d been there that night. Even Lila. She eyed them warily, sensing that something was wrong.

Since her discussion with her parents, it’d been business as usual as far as her education was concerned. Her fears of having to flee Paris and live in the woods, or transfer guardianship or who knew what else had not panned out. Her parents, bless them, had suggested becoming miraculous wielders in order to provide a constant defensive presence. Hopefully no one would ever expect them to be armed with magical jewels. They were also investing in a high end security system to ensure that the miracle box remained protected. Her father was now the Sly stallion, and her mother was Jade Vixen. Marinette cringed every time she thought of their names. Her parents actually thought they were cool. And not only that but, with their newfound powers, well, it was having an impact on their romantic life as well. They seriously needed to invest in better soundproofing for their bedroom, or else Marinette was going to have to start bleaching her brain.

“Hey, Marinette? Uh, can we maybe have a word?”

She focused back on the present. “What’s going on here?” she asked. “Where’s Mme. Bustier? And our other classmates?”

“We asked for some privacy,” Alya said, “so we could all talk.”

“And the staff gave it to you,” Marinette said flatly. She shouldn’t have been surprised. She took another step into the classroom and closed the door. “What is it then?”

Alya cleared her throat. “We want to apologize for everything that’s happened. And we want to tell you that we’re not going to tell anyone about you.”

She looked from one face to the other. It was hard to judge their sincerity. Lila looked like she’d eaten a lemon, which, strangely, did more to convince her that they meant it than the apologetic expressions on everyone else’s faces.

Since having been outed, Marinette had tried not to think too hard about the risks she and her parents now faced. She could only hope that, if they were attacked, her parents wearing two miraculouses each would be enough of a surprise element to enable them to escape, regroup, and strike back. But with Hawk Moth and Mayura in jail, she wasn’t even sure what other threats were out there. As frustrating as the constant fights with akumas and sentimonsters had been, they were at least a known quantity.

“Okay,” Marinette said finally, giving them a terse nod. “I understand, and thank you.”

There seemed to be a collective sigh of relief. Not a surprise. They’d all seen what Trixx had done to Lila. Maybe they thought they might get the same treatment.

“Uh, Marinette,” Nino began hesitantly. “Have you seen – do you know….” He trailed off, a lost expression on his face.

He must have been asking about Adrien, she surmised. She was pretty certain that no one in their class had spoken to Adrien since that night on the Liberty.

“He’s surviving,” Marinette said reluctantly. “I’ve left Hawk Moth’s kwami with him in order to keep him company and keep an eye on him.”

Nooroo’s reports had not been encouraging. Adrien barely moved. Only enough to eat and maintain a basic level of hygiene. He mostly sat and stared out his window, or lay in bed staring blankly at the ceiling. At first, she’d been determined not to have any sympathy for Adrien. He’d betrayed her. Violated her. Hurt her. Yet those few moments of weakness, as terrible as they’d been, were miniscule in comparison, at least timewise, to the support and friendship he’d given her over the years.

She tried to think about what it would have been like if her parents had asked her to betray Chat Noir. She couldn’t imagine ever doing it. Not even for her parents. But as Nooroo had pointed out, Marinette had grown up in a home that taught her what love and empathy looked like. Maybe if she’d been abused and neglected as he’d been, she might have done the same thing.

“He’s not well,” Marinette added. “The butterfly kwami is an empath. He says Adrien is severely depressed. If you can, you should go and see him.” The words were not as hard to say as she thought they ought to have been.

Then again, she was Ladybug. Compassion was part of her shtick.

“When will you lift this curse from me?” That was Lila.

Marinette looked up and met the girl’s gaze unflinchingly. “When do you think I should?” she countered.

She could see Lila working to hold back a bitter response. “Soon. I’ve learned my lesson.”

“It’s not just for you to learn a lesson,” Marinette admonished. “The kwamis are pissed. Hawk Moth and Mayura abused their kwamis. You heard them that night on the Liberty. Whatever you might think of me, I’m not the one dictating what’s happening here. The kwamis have an equal, if not greater, say in what punishments are being dished out. You conspired with Hawk Moth to subjugate all the other kwamis. This is not something that they take lightly.”

“But Adrien did the same thing, and you’re not-“ she whined.

Other students shied away from Lila with alarmed expressions.

Marinette shrugged and glanced down at her purse. “Tikki, you want to answer this?”

Tikki floated up in a flurry of red sparkles and gazed dispassionately at Lila. “Adrien was pressured into betraying Ladybug. He was clearly tormented by his decision, and repented in the end. You, Lila Rossi, did no such thing. You do not even care that your actions could have brought about the destruction of your entire species.”

Eyes widened at the very idea.

“That’s not possible,” Rose whimpered. “It can’t be.”

“It already happened,” Marinette said, suddenly angry. She pinned everyone down with her gaze. “You all treated these akumas like it was a game.” Alya had the decency to look abashed. “This stuff is real. It’s serious. It’s dangerous.” She gestured at Tikki. “This is Tikki. She is the embodiment of the power of creation. She is, for all intents and purposes, a God. She can rewrite reality on a whim and create anything. The magic that lets us tap into Tikki’s power, and the powers of the other kwamis, have major limits on them. Hawk Moth wanted to break those limits and gain full access to the powers of creation and destruction. In the original timeline, he broke the limiter on the power of destruction.” She looked at each of them once more in order to try to impress upon them the gravity of the situation. “He inadvertently caused all of Paris to be cataclysmed. And not only that, he caused the moon itself to be cataclysmed. He brought about the extinction of humanity. I literally got sent forward and backward through time to try to fix that mess. And I only barely made it. If the worst thing that happens is that Lila doesn’t get to manipulate people, then you should all count yourselves lucky.”

The door opened behind her. Mme. Bustier stood there looking uncomfortable. Without another word, Marinette took her seat.

#

The breeze coming in over the Seine was cool and crisp as Marinette stood with Luka at the stern of the Liberty.

“What are you going to do?” he asked.

“I’m staying,” she said. The words were a declaration and a confession all rolled into one.

Luka nodded. “I’m glad, but isn’t it dangerous?”

“Yes.” There was no getting around that fact. No beating around the bush. She was taking precautions, but the truth was, she didn’t know what dangers were out there, or just how crafty her enemies could be. She imagined dozens of nightmare scenarios ranging from knockout gas being pumped into the bakery, to high-yield explosives killing them before they could respond, to eldritch magical abominations oozing through the walls and consuming their souls while they slept.

“Can you handle it?” From anyone else, the question would have been offensive, but with Luka, there was no judgment, only honest concern.

Could she handle it? A small part of her was bitter that all this pressure was now on her head, that she was responsible for nineteen beings of God-like power. But part of her was honoured to have been chosen, to have been the one to go through hell and back to protect humanity. That she would be called on once more in the future was not in doubt. Was she prepared to face that challenge?

As she stared out over the water, at the other boats drifting lazily on the current, and kids yelling and playing on the other bank, she said finally, “Not yet, but I will be.”

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I first started writing this story, I was trying to write a love triangle between Marinette, Luka and Adrien for Valentine's Day. If you squint hard enough, you can kind of see it.


End file.
